Blue Skies
by rainydaywritings
Summary: Yukimura Sora led a simple life until the night her best friend was killed. Moving to Karakura Town to escape her past, she meets precious friends and gains an unexpected rival. But when a certain blue-haired arrancar crashes into her life, she learns that not everything is as it seems. Join Sora as she embarks on the journey of life, finds love, and uncovers the truth of her past.
1. Memories, Just the Beginning

_The sky was a brilliant blue, not a single fluffy cloud in sight. I could feel the warm rays of the unobscured sun beating down on me, making my skin tingle. Time seemed to stand still, and I wanted this moment to last forever. Just me and him. I could feel his calloused fingers tracing the lines of my palm as I pretended to nap under the midday sun._

" _Ne, Sora-chan?" He asked me, breath tickling my ear as he leaned closer._

" _Mm?" I opened one eye and gazed into those deep blue orbs staring back at me, a mischievous smirk making theM sparkle and dance. His hair was a mess as always, azure locks tousled in a careless bedhead style. "What is it Aoi-kun?"_

" _If you put our names together, we become a blue sky."_

" _Hn, I guess so." I smiled and closed my eyes, thinking that was all he had wanted to say. He was always coming up with silly observations and jokes like that. I giggled to myself, thinking we were a blue sky in more than name. Peeking over at him, I blushed as I noticed how his hair mixed with my own white tresses because of how close he was. Like soft, wispy clouds blending into a perfectly blue sky._

" _Ne, Sora-chan?"_

" _What?" I perked up, startled out of my thoughts._

" _We'll always be together, right?" At this, I opened my eyes and sat up, running the hand he wasn't holding through my fine, white hair. Of course we'd be together. We had always been together. Our mothers were best friends, so we had been raised side-by-side since we were babies. I had always known Aoi and he had always known me. I couldn't imagine a future where he wasn't there._

" _Of course. We're best friends. Of course, we'll always be together."_

" _You promise?"_

" _Nn." I nodded, smiling at him. "Always and forever, Aoi. You and me."_

" _Yeah, always and forever. Promise." He grinned, showing off the little gap where he'd recently lost one of his baby teeth._

 _As soon as that last word left his mouth, the sky darkened. Black, angry clouds blocked out the sun and it started to rain. It was freezing rain that came down hard, making me flinch as each drop hit my skin. The warm, fragrant grass we'd been sitting on turned into cold mud, sucking us into the ground. Frightened, I reached for my friend. My hand closed around air, empty._

" _Aoi? AOI?!" Looking around frantically, I couldn't see anything. It wasn't until the mud had dragged me down up to my neck that I saw something in the distance. Familiar blue hair was floating in the river. Was he swimming? I struggled and called his name again, straining my neck to get a better look. Aoi was in the river, but he wasn't swimming. His body was motionless, and the river was red. "AOI!" I screamed for him over and over, not believing what my eyes were seeing until the mud devoured me, seeping into my mouth and into my nose, his name frozen on my lips as I felt myself suffocating. 'Aoi…'_

Screams woke me from a deep sleep. Gasping for air, it took me a few minutes to calm down from the nightmare. This was almost a nightly ritual for me. After getting my breathing under control, I pushed the covers off of me and headed for the bathroom. The shower hissed to life as I turned the knobs. After a quick shower to wash away the remnants of sweat and fear, I dressed for the day in my Karakura High uniform and started getting breakfast ready for myself. It was only me in the apartment. It's been that way for almost three years now. I never knew my dad, and Mom passed away a few years back after succumbing to ovarian cancer.

As I slip some bread into the toaster, I find myself reflecting on what woke me this morning. I've been having the nightmares for years now, ever since the incident. We had been so young, Aoi and I. We didn't understand how naive and helpless we were at the time. Every child thinks they're invulnerable, the heroes of their own little worlds.

We were 6 when Aoi went missing one night. It had been like any other day. We'd gone to my house to play after school. We couldn't go to the park because of the rain. Aoi was just going to run home and ask his parents if he could stay the night and pack a bag.

" _Mommy, Aoi-kun isn't back yet. Can you call Auntie Rena?" 6-year-old Sora pouted up at her mother, slightly annoyed that he was taking so long getting back. They were supposed to be saving a princess from killer ninjas and building a pillow fort before bedtime._

" _Sure, sweetheart. Dinner's almost ready. Go set the table while I make the call."_

" _Okay!" She could hear her mother in the kitchen as she went about placing the silverware and plates on the table._

" _Are you sure? He left hours ago, Rena. Calm down, we'll find him." There was a slight not of panic in her voice that set Sora on edge. "Okay, yeah. Sora and I will start looking for him. We'll meet up near the bridge. Don't worry, we'll find him."_

" _Mommy?"_

" _Sora, grab your coat. Aoi hasn't been home yet. We're going to go look for him."_

Everything after that had been a blurred rush for me. I remember running through the rain with my mother pulling me along, calling out for my friend. I had been the one to find him.

 _Sora was tired and shivering. They had been out here for a couple hours now, and still no sign of Aoi-kun. Her mother was trying to comfort Auntie Rena. Uncle Kaito was angry and yelling, making her mother and Auntie cry._

" _Where are you, Aoi-kun?" She whispered to herself, looking down the bank at the swelling river. Something by the bank caught her eye, and she soon found herself slipping and sliding down the embankment to get to it. She'd know that shock of blue hair anywhere. A big smile lit up her face as she approached the boy. His head was laying in the mud, the water teasing his hair, making the strands dance like seaweed. "Oi, Aoi-kun, where have you been?" She giggled, as she got closer, relieved to have finally found her friend. She knelt down beside him and shook him. "Did you fall down and get hurt? You're always getting hurt, Aoi-kun." He didn't respond. Rolling him over, her smile trembled as her next words remained painfully stuck in her throat, choking her. Her breathing became labored as she started to hyperventilate at the sight. Aoi's sky-blue eyes were open and staring up at her, unseeing and frozen in fear. And there was blood on his shirt. So much blood. The rain had washed away a good amount, but his front was still stained with it, and she could smell it. It was the sharp, sour smell of pure terror. Her vision blurred as tears gathered in her violet eyes. Strangled noises were trying to escape from her clogged throat, building up until all of a sudden - "AAAAAAAAAAGH! AOIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!" Her scream brought the adults running to her side, Auntie Rena filling the night with her own screams as she caught sight of the boy's body laid out on Sora's lap._

I don't remember exactly what happened after that. Mom said I was in shock. I had to see a therapist once a week for years after Aoi was murdered, and I still had nightmares about what happened on and off ever since. We had moved soon after. Auntie Rena and Uncle Kaito blamed us for what happened, even though Aoi-kun and I had always walked home alone on occasion. It was 'an unforeseen tragedy' is what my therapist had called it.

We had ended up here in Karakura and had tried to start over. All my mother wanted for me was a normal childhood, not that that was really possible after that fateful night. Especially, when I started seeing the ghosts. I had only mentioned seeing them once to my therapist and then never again. It was just something that I learned was better being kept a secret. They always seemed to seek me out though. They were never scary to me, just sad and lonely. So I tried to make it a point to talk to them whenever I could, but outside the hearing range of others. No need to earn myself extra sessions with the shrink.

Yukimura Suzuha was a determined woman though. She worked hard to provide for us and make me happy. She had worked as a waitress at a few different establishments. She didn't make much, so our water and electric would get shut off from time to time. I didn't mind though. After a late shift, I'd stay up and wait for her to bring home leftovers, and we'd end up eating lukewarm chicken parmesan by candlelight. Even at the end, when she was lying in a hospital bed, her last words to me had been to "Find your happiness."

Sighing, I grabbed the toasted bread, smeared some butter on top and popped it into my mouth as I headed out the door. No sense in dwelling on such grim topics first thing in the morning.

I had just finished off my breakfast and was entering homeroom when something attacked me from behind.

"Sora-chan! I missed you! How was your weekend?"

"Orihime, I told you not to sneak up on me like that." I pouted at the strawberry-blond headed girl with her arms around my shoulders and her boobs pressed into my back, making me feel slightly self-conscious at my more moderate bust-size. They weren't nonexistent, but nowhere near Hime's level. I was kind of used to this morning greeting. After all, we have been best friends since I moved to Karakura. Orihime had told me we were destined to be friends, since I shared the same name as her beloved brother. We had gotten each other through a really rough year when I had lost my mom and she'd lost her brother. I don't know what I would have done without her during those dark time. Pushing the clinging waves of nostalgia aside, I looked around the classroom. "Where's Tatsuki at?" I questioned, asking after our other friend.

"She had morning club practice. She's probably on her way now. Here, try this!" Before I could protest, something squishy, spicy, and sweet was shoved into my mouth. I chewed slowly, knowing from experience that it would hurt her feelings if I spit it out or gagged.

"Let me guess." I gasped after forcing the horrible concoction down. "You made….spicy banana bread with...is that soy sauce and pork I taste?"

"Yeah! Wow, how did you know? You're amazing, Sora-chan!"

"Thanks, Hime." I gave a weak chuckle, feeling my stomach lurch in protest. For some reason, I was the only person Orihime felt the need to force-feed. Even Tatsuki had avoided this cruel treatment, claiming that she had to be careful about what foods she ate because of club. To be fair, I could have claimed something similar since I practiced at the dojo with her after school, but I just couldn't say no to my clueless friend. I listened to her telling me about her weekend and all her food experiments as I got settled at my desk. She had actually been gone for the past week. She hadn't told me exactly why, which was odd. The girl was practically incapable of keeping a secret. I had a sneaking suspicion that it had to do with a certain orange-haired delinquent though. _Speak of the devil._

"Oi, Strawberry! Where were you last week?" I glared at him from across the room and he returned it. Kurosaki Ichigo and I have been enemies/rivals as long as Orihime and I have been friends. It all started when my mom enrolled me at the local dojo to learn karate. I had tried to make friends with him, me being the new kid and all, and he'd been rude to say the least.

 _Sora was standing alone, wishing her mother would come back and take her home. There were too many kids here. They were smiling and laughing, and it made her miss Aoi-kun. She looked around the room and paused when she saw another little boy standing by himself. All the other kids had grouped together, but the orange-haired boy seemed out of place. Sora quietly padded over to him._

" _Um, hi. I'm Yukimura Sora. What's your name?"_

" _Kurosaki Ichigo." He answered without looking at her, his gaze boring into the hardwood floor._

" _Ichigo-kun, do you wanna be friends? I just moved here and thought that maybe, if you want, we could -"_

" _Just leave. I don't wanna be your friend!" Little Ichigo finally looked at Sora, fixing her with a glare as he pushed the girl away, causing her to trip and fall over. The other kids saw and laughed at her. Her cheeks were bright red as she jumped back up and hurled her tiny fist into Ichigo's face. He cried out and held his hand to his nose, which was now gushing blood._

" _I didn't wanna be your friend anyway, stupid Strawberry!" Her eyes glittered with unshed tears, too proud to give this jerk the satisfaction of seeing her cry._

" _You're crazy! Stay away from me!" He yelled before running off to tell the teacher what she had done, conveniently leaving out the push and the mean words that had provoked her._

Snapping back to the present, Sora realized she had spaced out again and just barely caught the sharp retort of her rival.

"None of your damn business, Yukimura!"

"You make it my business when you get my best friend involved, baka!"

"I don't know what the hell you're talking about!"

"The hell you don't! I'm not stupid, Kurosaki. It's no coincidence that you, Hime, Ishida and Sado all went missing for a week. Where were you guys?"

"Um, excuse me." A small voice piped up from behind Kurosaki's stupid tall frame. Peeking out from behind him was the girl who had started attending our class a few months ago, Kuchiki Rukia. "I'm sorry. I had to deal with something back home and invited them to come with me for the week."

"Tch." I knew that was a lie, but it still kind of hurt my feelings that they hadn't included me. It had been a really boring, quiet week without Orihime. Tatsuki wasn't really available because of her club activities, so I had spent most of the week training at the dojo and talking to the ghost who wanders around Karakura Park. No offense to Tomo-chan. She was super sweet, but hanging out with dead people isn't my idea of a crazy awesome adventure. "Whatever. Just stop involving Hime in your 'outings', Strawberry. I don't want her catching your stupid."

"That's it! Let's take this outside! I don't care if you're a girl, I'll kick your ass, Yukimura!"

"Ha! As if you could!" Unlike Ichigo, who dropped out soon after our altercation, I had kept studying at the dojo. I was more than confident that I could take down the stupid Strawberry in a fight. "I'll humor you though if you want. We can settle this after school, and I can show everyone how pathetic you are." I cooed sweetly at him.

"Ne, Sora-chan, please don't fight with Ichigo-kun."

"Gomen, Hime, but Strawberry needs to learn his place."

"But he's stronger than you! You could get hurt!"

"It hurts that you have no faith in me, Hime." I give her my puppy dog eyes, and she sighs in defeat.

"Please be careful."

"Of course!"


	2. Enter Hueco Mundo

**Okay, second chapter! I'm still trying to figure out what's a good length for each one. So let me know if you think they need to be longer. *Disclaimer* I do not own any of the characters from Bleach, only my OC Sora :)**

After school, I made my way to the outdoor track to meet my rival. He had no idea what he'd gotten himself into. He always was a reckless idiot. Reaching back, I tied my hair up into a messy ponytail and stretched my arms over my head. Yep, Strawberry was going to regret challenging me.

"Ready to get your ass handed to ya, Kurosaki?"

"Just don't go crying home when you lose, Yukimura!"

"I didn't know you told jokes. That one was pretty funny."

"Just shut up and let's do this!"

Losing my sarcastic smile, I sank down into position and waited for the idiot to make the first move. Sure enough, he came swinging at me right away. I dodged and sidestepped, getting behind him, and kicking him in the back. If he hadn't come at me fully loaded, he could have kept his balance, but my kick was all that was needed to send him face-first into the ground.

"Is that all you got? I'm disappointed." I yawned and pretended to check my nails. Riling Ichigo up was one of my favorite pastimes, and it never got old. "Come on now, I know you can do better than that."

"SHUT UP!" His next attack actually caught me off guard as he came shot up off the ground and went to tackle me. I was just barely able to dodge again, tripping him up as I jumped to the side and stuck my left leg out into his path. As he went diving for the ground again, he caught my foot on the way down, sending me toppling over with him. I grunted as I hit the ground, but managed to roll away from the hotheaded idiot before he could pin me. He actually got a few good hits in on me after we got back up. I wiped some blood from my lip and grinned before settling in for his inevitable beatdown. Sure enough, he got cocky and left himself wide open. I took full advantage and felt a rush of adrenaline shoot through me when I not only felt but heard the satisfying _thwack_ as my foot landed in a roundhouse kick to his jaw and he fell. Straightening up from my fighting stance I grinned down at the knocked out Kurosaki.

"Remember this next time you think you're hot shit, ya stupid Strawberry." Turning to the crowd, I searched for my best friend, ready to go chill at her place. "Hey, Hime, you ready to -"

"Ichigo-kun!" My best friend ran past me and knelt beside my rival, her hands fluttering around his bruised jaw.

"What -"

"Why did you do that, Sora?" The sweet brown eyes that had only ever looked at me with love and acceptance were hurt and angry. "Why do you have to be so mean to Ichigo-kun?" No words would come to me. First she'd ditched school and her friends for a whole week and now she and the stupid Strawberry are suddenly besties? My heart hurt at the accusatory glare on my best friend's face. I licked my lips nervously, tasting the disgusting flavor of my own blood.

"Why are you on his side, Hime? Why is he so important to you now?"

"He just is! I care about him, so stop being so mean to him!"

"But Hime -"

"Just leave." Her words were like another punch in the gut, echoing the same words Kurosaki had barked at me when we were kids. Things had started to change ever since that Rukia girl showed up a few months back. Everything was changing, and I felt like I was being left behind. I staggered back and silently grabbed my bag before running away.

Not even Tomo-chan wanted to talk to me today. In fact, most of my ghostly acquaintances had started disappearing lately. Another odd occurrence since the arrival of Kuchiki Rukia. Sighing, I sank into one of the swings and dropped my bag next to me. I really didn't know what to make of all this craziness. It just didn't make sense. Kurosaki had always been a loner until Rukia suddenly appeared. Then he and Sado started hanging out and then Orihime as well. Oh, and Uryu. What a weird group. It didn't seem likely that they all suddenly realized that they had oh so much in common. No, there was another factor at work in this equation. But what?

"Ugh, this is so frustrating!" Feeling all the anger and hurt welling up inside me, I gripped the swing tightly and just wished I were anywhere but here. I just wanted to get away from everything and be able to think clearly about the whole ridiculous situation. Before I realized what was happening, a large black hole formed in front of me. I shrieked and fell backwards off my swing. Peeking over at it from behind the swing, I studied it as it pulsed. Huh. Picking myself off the ground, I moved carefully over to the sudden tear in the universe. I was more curious than anything else. Where did it go? "Well, only one way to find out." Grinning my signature reckless grin, I jumped through the hole without a second thought.

"Pfft. Why do I feel like I just landed in the world's largest litter box?" I huffed as I spit out sand. "Did I teleport to the Sahara?" Finally looking up, I caught sight of a giant fortress type building about a mile away from where I landed. "Huh, nope. Not the Sahara." An inhuman screech came from behind me and I sighed, knowing this was not going to be a pleasant experience. "And that's probably not a tiger about to maul me to death either." Glancing back, I could see the glowing red eyes of a giant scorpion monster thing. It had what looked like a white mask over its eyes and it's tail was gleaming a bright green, with what I could only guess was poisonous venom, ready to course through my bloodstream. That is, if I lived long enough for it to do any coursing. It blinked once at me and that was my cue to run. "Great thinking, Sora." I growled at myself between pants, as I ran for my life. "Let's jump through the portal to god knows where. It'll be an adventure! It'll take you to Narnia! Fucking hell! That's where I am!" Looking around for something to use as a weapon, I didn't notice the figure standing a few feet from me and ended up colliding with it. "Shit!"

"What the fuck?!" Was the simultaneous reply from the person I'd run into. "Watch where you're going, ya fucking numero! Espada walking here!"

"Espa-what now?" I looked up at the man, who had somehow managed to stay on his feet. My eyes traveled up long legs and got stuck on the six-pack with the hole in the middle of it, then up to the angry yet attractive face of the man cussing me out colorfully. His eyes were the deepest blue I'd ever seen, highlighted by strange green markings, and complimented by wild cerulean hair. _He looks so familiar_. I thought before jolting back to reality when I saw the jawbone attached to his right cheek. Then I looked back down at the gaping hole in his stomach. _That's impossible._ "Hey, I'm not a doctor or anything, but have you gotten that giant hole in your stomach checked out?"

"The fuck are you talking about, woman?!" Before I can reply, he draws a sword I hadn't noticed until now and I flinch as he comes at me with it. Hearing a crunch behind me, I open my eyes and look to see that the scorpion monster had been impaled on the blue-haired man's sword.

"Uh, thanks. I was gonna take care of that. Ya know, once I found a weapon and all." I stood and dusted myself off, looking around and realizing we weren't too far from the fortress now. I must have run farther than I thought while being chased. "Do you know where we are?"

"Huh?" The look he gave me said he thought I was an idiot. And then he did something really weird. Almost as weird as there being a giant scorpion monster and a fucking hole in his stomach or a jawbone stuck to his face. He sniffed me. Like, leaned over, stuck his nose against my neck and fucking sniffed me. Without thinking, my hand came up and I smacked him soundly across the face.

"Excuse me, it's called personal space, you weirdo!"

"What are you?" He growled. "You smell human, but not really."

"Whatever. I'm just gonna go this way and try to find another portal thing back to Karakura. You can stay here and sniff yourself like the freak you are."

"It's called a garganta, idiot. Only Hollows and Arrancar are supposed to be able to create them. Well, there's a few exceptions."

"You keep throwing out words that I don't know and it's starting to piss me off! Who the hell are you anyway?"

"Fucking woman, shut up! The name's Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez, Sexta Espada."

"Again with the words I don't understand. Where the hell are we, Grimmjow?"

"This is Hueco Mundo, you little idiot. If you shut up for one second, I would have gotten to that. How did you get here?"

"I told you already. The portal thing appeared and I stepped through, got a mouth full of sand, got chased by that giant scorpion monster, and now I'm here arguing with some asshole." My strange acquaintance didn't seem amused by my colorful retelling of current events. "Look, it's obvious you want me gone as badly as I do. So, care to help a girl out?" Instead of answering my question, he leaned in close and poked at my slightly swollen lip.

"Who beat the shit outta you? You get into a catfight with some other chick?" He made a pawing motion at my face. He actually had the audacity to mock me! Huffing, I batted his hand away and glared at him. _Oh, if looks could kill_.

"For your information, I was the one beating the shit outta the other guy. His name is Kurosaki Ichigo aka stupid Strawberry, and I owned his ass!" Losing interest in my bloodied lip, he shrugged and gave me a measuring look.

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't just kill you where you stand." Blinking up at him, I frowned and rubbed the back of my head. _Well that wasn't what I was expecting. Note to self, don't ask for help from crazy assholes with swords._

"You know what? I'm just gonna go find that - garganta, was it? I'm just gonna go find it myself. Thanks for saving my life. Enjoy the rest of your day!" With that, I set off back in the direction I came. Hopefully I wouldn't run into any of those creepy crawly monsters on my way back. _Huh, maybe I should have asked Grimmjow if he had a spare sword._ Thinking back on his final words to me, I shook my head. _Nah better off without it._ I had almost made it back to the spot where I'd bumped into tall, malicious and hungry when I felt something grab me from behind. "EEK! Stranger danger!" I stomped on his instep and elbowed my attacker in the chest before spinning around to face him. "Oh, it's you."

"YOU -" His face was livid, his jaw clenched so tightly I was surprised his teeth didn't crack under the pressure. "The hell do you think you're doing, woman?!"

"Hn, you yell a lot. And my name isn't 'woman.' It's Yukimura Sora."

"I'll call you whatever the hell I feel like, human scum."

"You're contradicting yourself. You said I smelled almost human, which means I'm technically not human, right?"

"Just shut up." He ran a large, scarred hand down his face before looking down at me again. I hadn't realized just how tall he was. Then again, there's a reason I hadn't tried out for the basketball team. Actually two. One, I was just shy of 5'2". Two, I just sucked at basketball. Zero skills on the court. As I went to comment on his giant frame, his hand came out and quickly clamped over my mouth.

"Hrrrrrm!"

"I really should just kill you now." He contemplated, not bothered at all as I tried to pry his rough hand from my mouth. "However, despite how infuriating you are, you're pretty entertaining. Weak little thing like you thinks she can take me on. Kind of makes my day. So, I guess you get to live….for now." I glared up at his stupid smirk, pointing from the hand inhibiting me from speech and then down to the ground. With a roll of his eyes, he pulled his hand away. Gasping dramatically for air, I made it a point to shoot him one final glare before attempting to walk away again. Again, I was stopped by this insufferable asshole. "Oi, I don't know where you're trying to get off to but you don't want to go that way."

"Oh really? And why's that smartass?" His only response was a knowing smirk as he shoved his hands into his pockets. "Really? That's how you wanna play this? Fine. If you're so smart, tell me how the fuck to get back home!"

"Well you're not going to get there by wandering around Hueco Mundo and becoming Hollow food, that's for sure. You have to create another garganta."

"..." _Create one of those black hole portals? The hell is this guy talking about?_

"Don't tell me - you serious? You don't know how to make one. Then how the fuck did you get here?"

"I DON'T KNOW! That's what I've been trying to tell you, moron. I thought I was jumping into a portal to Narnia or some shit. I didn't think I'd be wandering around some scary ass desert filled with assholes and the Scorpion King's bride!"

"Hn, now you're using words I don't understand." He mocked. "Come on. You said Karakura, right?" He turned on his heel and took a few steps away, lifting his hand and looking back to me for confirmation. His sudden cooperative behavior was disorienting.

"Um, yeah. Karakura Town."

"Lucky you. Aizen just gave all the Espadas the coordinates for that place. I'll create a garganta for you. Next time you end up in Hueco Mundo though, don't expect me to save your sorry ass. This is a one time deal. Got it?"

"Yep." I popped my 'p', using all the self control I had not to say something insulting, which would probably result in me being dead or lost in this hellhole forever instead of back in Karakura. With a satisfied nod, Grimmjow opened a garganta and waited for me to step through.

"Heh, maybe I'll look you up when I make my own visit to the Living World. You can entertain me if I get bored." At this, I looked over my shoulder and gave him my most deadpan look.

"Please don't." I had a split-second to enjoy the annoyed look on Grimmjow's stupidly handsome face before I stepped through and ended up back in the park. "Ah, home sweet home." Stretching my arms above my head, I looked around to check if my school bag was still by the swingset.

"Well, you don't see that every day." Turning on my heel, I saw a sketchy looking older man with blond hair, a bucket hat, and creepy 'I know everything about everything' grey-blue eyes. This guy was probably an 8 on my creep factor scale. I took a step back and then another, never taking my eyes off of him. "No need to be shy. In fact, I'd prefer if you were completely open with me about what you were doing stepping out of a garganta." Before I knew what was happening, I found myself pinned to a nearby tree.

"Ah!" My head bounced off the trunk painfully. "SERIOUSLY? This is not happening." Gathering my wits together, I tried to knee him in the groin, but he'd accounted for that and had my legs strategically pinned as well. "What do you want, you creepy old man? I'm not interested in a sugar daddy, if that's what you're after!"

"Cute." He gave me a dangerous, close-eyed smile. "But that's not what I'm after. Now tell me, where did you just come from? Did Aizen send you? Are you an arrancar?"

"What is with people and using words I don't understand today? Is it fuck with Sora day? Because I didn't get the memo." I squirmed in his grip to no avail. Shrieking my frustration, I let my head fall back against the tree. "Look, I don't know who the hell this Aizen guy is. I don't know what the fuck an arrancar is and I'm beyond regretting ever exploring that weird fucking portal earlier! Now, LET ME GO!"

"You don't seem to be lying, but I find it hard that you just stumbled upon a garganta. They don't stay open unless someone is coming or going. Did someone come through the one you went through to get to Hueco Mundo?"

"No. I was having a shitty day and was minding my own business when it just popped out of nowhere and scared the living bejeezus out of me!" I had never felt so angry and helpless in my life. As my anger grew, I could feel myself getting lightheaded, as if I were floating.

"Interesting. You're radiating an intense amount of reiatsu right now. Definitely not human, are you?" He poked and prodded me, violating all sense of personal space.

"GET YOUR HANDS OFF OF ME!"

"Hm, you don't seem to be an arrancar. No obvious holes or protruding bones. Clearly not a Hollow, yet you don't recognize Aizen's name, which means you can't be associated with him or his schemes." He was now way too close for comfort, his eyes boring into mine as if he could look into my very soul. "What are you?"

"I'm pissed off! Let me go now, and I won't report you to the police for assaulting me, you prick!" Surprisingly, he obeyed. He stepped back, releasing her and holding out his hand.

"I'm Urahara Kisuke. Pleasure to meet you -"

"None of your business!" I rubbed at my wrists and stared him down, unwilling to turn my back on him.

"Aren't you curious about what's going on? The garganta? Aizen? What you are? I can help you get the answers, you know."

"Yeah? At what price?"

"My, aren't you the distrusting sort? I'm only trying to help."

"You SLAMMED me into a TREE!"

"Tch, you could hardly blame me if you knew what I know." This Urahara guy was seriously number one on my shit list now. He had just stolen the number one spot that Kurosaki usually occupied. However, he did make a good point. I DID want to know what was going on because somehow, I just knew that stupid Strawberry and Kuchiki Rukia were caught up in the middle of this shitstorm I'd jumped into, quite literally.

"Fine. I'll let you try to explain things, but we do this on my terms. We meet at a public place tomorrow at noon."

"Sounds reasonable." There was a flash of what looked like respect in his eyes, but it was gone just as quickly, making me question if it had ever been there in the first place. "Let's say the cafe across from Karakura station at noon."

"Fine. Now leave." He chuckled before disappearing into the night. "Fuck. This just isn't my day." Grabbing my school bag, I started the long trek back to my apartment, praying to Kami not to let me run into anymore stalkers or freaks of nature before I made it back to my sanctuary. I was almost home free when I noticed my bag was currently moving. Stopping dead in front of my apartment door, I looked down at the flap of my messenger bag flopping around as if something was trying to get out. _What now?! I swear if it's something supernatural that wants to eat my face, I am done._ Cautiously, I reached out and flipped the top flap up, catching a glimpse of white before whatever it was jumped at my face. "Oh Kami, it's happening!" I fell backwards in an awkward pile of flailing limbs, letting out an unholy shriek that my neighbors would probably report me for. I squeezed my eyes shut and prayed for a swift death. But all that came was a sharp pain originating from the end of my nose. Opening my eyes, I broke out into hysterical giggles at the sight. A tiny white cat had his little fangs fastened tightly into me. What I'd assumed was a creature from hell was just a fluffy bundle of white and gray fur with angry blue eyes. _He reminds me of that asshole I met in Hueco Mundo, except fluffier._ Grabbing him by the scruff of his neck, I pried him off my face and held him at a distance to get a good look at him. It was indeed a him. He seemed offended that I was manhandling him, letting out an outraged yowl. Keeping hold on him, I unlocked my door and smiled. "I think I'll call you Grimmjow."

 **There you have it, folks. Please let me know what you think of the new chapter. Thanks for reading! xxoo**


	3. Hollows, Lies, and Family Ties

**Thank you to all those who've taken the time to read my story! It's been really fun working on it, and I hope you're enjoying it as well! So without further ado, here's chapter 3 of Blue Skies! *Disclaimer* I do not own any characters from Bleach, only my OC.**

Apparently, Grimmie wasn't a huge fan of my bachelorette pad, which he made very clear after destroying my curtains, tearing up my couch, chewing the cord of my phone charger in half, and redecorating my living room with a flurry of feathers, courtesy of some of my favorite throw pillows. The only thing he seemed to appreciate was my bed. After I'd chased him around the apartment, trying to stop him from his next act of terror, he had discovered my room. I had left him there to go set up a makeshift litter box for him and get ready for bed.

When I returned to the room, he had made himself at home in the middle of my comfy, queen-sized bed. Now, most cats curl in on themselves when they sleep with their cute little cat faces tucked into their tails. They would find a nice box or maybe even a pillow and that was that. This little furball from hell deemed it necessary to lay on his back with with all four of his legs splayed across as much of the bed as possible. Right in the middle of my bed.

"Oh hey there, Grimmie. I see you found MY bed. Glad to see you're settling in and all, but do you think you could scoot over just a bit?" I made to pull back the covers to slide in, but froze in place when he opened one eye and glared at me, his tail twitching on the bedspread, daring me to try and make a move. "Come on! You're so little, you don't need the whole bed!" The little bastard stretched his limbs as far as possible before looking up at me with the smuggest look a cat is capable of. "Dammit, you're just like your namesake you cocky little - FINE! Take it! Don't get used to it though. You may have won the battle, but I will win the war!" I was being ignored now. With a sigh of defeat, I grabbed a pillow and snagged one of the extra blankets I keep in the closet. I cast one more look of longing at my nice warm bed before making my way to the couch. Worst day ever. It seemed only appropriate that the icing on top was getting kicked to the couch by a cat. _Maybe I should have thought twice about adopting fluff for brains. He doesn't seem to like me. If anything, he's using me for my super awesome bed. Typical male._ I dropped my pillow at the end of the couch and laid down, pulling my blanket up around my neck. So much had happened today. Everything was still settling in for me. _I traveled to a different dimension._ _That wasn't too bad an experience, well, aside from almost getting killed and meeting the lovely Grimmjow._ I thought sarcastically. The dimension thing wasn't really mind-boggling to me. I'd always assumed there were other planes of existence. Talking to ghosts had kind of desensitized me to the supernatural. Sure, it was weird and fascinating, but I wasn't struggling to accept everything that had happened.

Rolling to my back, I stared up at the ceiling, piecing together everything I'd learned so far. _Fact #1. That portal is actually called a garganta, which apparently only things called arrancars and hollows can create….with exceptions. Fact #2. I may or may not have created said garganta. Fact #3. Because I may have created the garganta, I might not be human. (also confirmed by Grimmjow and Urahara) Fact #4. Grimmjow is probably an arrancar, since he had an obvious hole in his stomach and a protruding jawbone on his face. Fact #5. Grimmjow works for Aizen, who is probably a pretty bad dude since he's 'scheming' and all. Fact #6. The world I ended up in is called Hueco Mundo and is probably the realm where arrancars and hollows (still not sure what those are) reside._

"That will have to do until I get some more answers from that creep, Urahara." Satisfied with my conclusions, I curled up under my blanket and let sleep drag me under.

When I woke up, I felt better than I had in awhile. For the first time in a long time, I had not dreamed. It was just restful, dreamless morning sun had woken me, peeking at me from the window. I rubbed the sleep from my eyes. Feeling a weight on my chest, I glanced down. Grimmie had settled in, curled up on my chest sometime during the night. He looked comfortable. Reaching down, I gently rubbed the spot between his ears. He stirred. Peeping one eye open, he let out what sounded like something between a purr and a rumbling growl. I took it to mean 'I will allow this once, pitiful human, but do not think for a moment that this means I accept you.' I would take what I could get. I smiled and decided to have fun with him before I got up and going for the day.

"Oi, what's this? I gave up my bed for you and this is how you thank me?" I teased him as I slid a finger under his chin and gave it a little scratch. His body started vibrating with the intensity of his purr as he peered at me from half-closed eyes. After a few more seconds of satisfying chin scratches, he reached out a paw and pushed me away. Rolling my eyes at his antics and sitting up, I carefully moved him from my chest and placed him on the pillow I'd recently been resting on. I headed for the bedroom to pick out what to wear to my rendezvous with Urahara.

There was no way I was going to school today. I needed answers before I could confront Kurosaki and Rukia about the strange events taking place lately. I was curious. What would that creepy, old man disclose during our meeting today? _Does he know what I am? Do I want to know what I am? Who is Aizen? What part do the arrancars play in all of this?_ _So many questions that I don't have the answers to. Would he be able to answer them for me? I guess I'll find out soon_. Sliding open my closet door, I chose a light, off-the-shoulder blue tunic and a pair of black leggings to go underneath. After scrounging around at the bottom of my closet, I located my black ankle boots and slipped them on. They would give me a nice little boost, making me feel a little taller. I would need every inch to up my intimidation factor, if I wanted to grill Urahara for the answers I sought. I ventured into the bathroom, located to the right of my bedroom door. I grabbed up my hairbrush, running it through my long, white tresses. After finishing, I surveyed myself in the mirror before heading back out to the living room. Little Grimmjow was still passed out on the couch. He looked so innocent and cute when he wasn't tearing through the apartment like the tiny force of destruction I knew him to be capable of. He didn't even bother opening his eyes to acknowledge my imminent departure. I grabbed up my messenger bag, slung it over my shoulder and headed out the door.

"Behave yourself while I'm gone, please. I'll bring you a treat back if you're good!" I called back into my apartment, feeling a pleasant warmth at knowing that it wasn't empty, that I had someone waiting for my return. Locking up behind me, I shouldered my bag and started out on my quest to solve this puzzle that had intruded upon my life.

I was the first to arrive at Moe Mocha. I'd never been there before, but had heard both the girls and boys in my class rave about it. It was a cutesy maid cafe that served an assortment of fancy drinks, including coffee and tea. They also served delicious, freshly made desserts every day. The waitresses wore lolita style maid outfits in a variety of pastel colors. The girl who greeted me at the door was named Luka-chan. She was about my height, with blond hair braided into twin plaits and big brown eyes. Her uniform was a pastel pink with pink, bunny print stockings to match and black ballet flats on her dainty feet. Her smile was bright and sweet, making me blush when she flashed it my way. Cute things were my ultimate weakness, hence why I had decided to keep a psycho kitty, bent on destroying my home.

"Please follow me, Ojo-sama." Her skirts _swished_ as she turned and headed towards a small table near the window, midday sun dappling the table for two. I settled into one of the seats and set my bag by my feet on the floor. "Would you like Luka-chan to go over our menu with you?"

"Please? This is my first time here." She nodded and pointed to different items on the menu, explaining what each entailed, as well as her personal favorites. In the end, I decided on the strawberry hot chocolate with macaroons on the side. I flashed her a smile of my own as she wrote down my order, and I noticed the pale pink polish adorning her nails with little bunny stickers snuggled into every other nail. "Your nails are so cute, Luka-chan! Is that Usahana on them?"

"Hai! Luka-chan is so happy you noticed! Isn't Usahana the cutest?!" We chatted for a while about the different cute points of our favorite character until someone started clearing their throat behind us.

"Sora-chan, you sure have some cute interests. I have to say, I didn't expect that. Are you perhaps what they call a tsun-de-re?" The mocking voice of Urahara called out to me, drawing out that loathsome word.

"Urahara-sama, it's rude to tease a lady like that. You embarrassed Sora-chan." Luka scolded him playfully, as she pulled out the chair opposite mine. He thanked her as he took his seat, winking in Luka's direction and setting her off into a fit of giggles. Setting his menu in front of him, her cute smile returned as she questioned, "Shall I prepare your usual?" Apparently, he was a regular and on very good terms with at least one of the maids.

"Yes, that would be fine. Thank you, Luka-chan."

"Hai!" With a polite bow, she skipped away back into the kitchen, leaving me alone with a smirking old man. I leveled my fiercest glare at him and sat back in my chair, putting some distance between us.

"First off, never address me as Sora-chan again if you value your life, baka hentai. Second, you will not speak of this to anyone by penalty of death." My evil glare did not seem to be as intimidating as I had hoped because he was still smirking. _Well this is going well. So much for my intimidation factor._ I momentarily switched my glare to my favorite pair of boots.

"My apologies if I offended you, Sora. I wasn't sure what to call you since you so rudely failed to tell me your name the other night. It won't happen again." I didn't trust that smile. It was sharp and secretive. "As for your other demand, it's nothing to be ashamed of. Though I never imagined the mouth that cursed me up and down yesterday would utter the sacred, adorable name of Usahana. It was a pleasant surprise."

"Shut up." I tried and failed to hide my blush of embarrassment. "Can we just get down to business? I'd like to be rid of you as soon as possible."

"You really know how to make someone feel welcome." He muttered as he placed his striped hat on the table beside him. His hair was a shaggy, pale blond, and in the daylight I saw he had a light stubble on his face as well. His eyes lost their teasing glint and became those of the man I had met in the park last night, hard, calculating and cold as ice. "We'll start with the basics. You are already aware of the existence of spirits or ghosts. They are the souls of those who die in the Living World, those who have lost their way or have been tethered to something in their mortal life. Where do you suppose those souls are supposed to wind up after their human life has expired?"

"I assumed either heaven or hell, but I can tell that answer is not correct."

"No, not entirely. I guess if you wanted, you could liken Soul Society to heaven and Hueco Mundo to hell."

"Heh, so I was right about that place."

"I take it your visit was less than pleasant?"

"Hn, I met a giant scorpion thing that tried to eat me and an asshole who threatened to kill me for no good reason. You tell me."

"Oh? The scorpion was probably a Hollow by the sound of it. Hollows occasionally find their way into the Living World. They are empty creatures who seek only to consume. They eat the souls that are trapped or lost. Sometimes, they will target the living if they have above average reiatsu."

"And what's that? Reiatsu, I mean."

"It's spirit energy. All living creatures have it, but not all are able to harness it and bend it to their will. Your friends are an exception, though probably because of their constant interaction with Ichigo."

"Aha! I knew that stupid Strawberry was involved in this somehow! We'll get to that soon. First, explain what you meant about Orihime and the others."

"Their reiatsu is slightly above average and they are able to use it in different ways."

"Different how?"

"Well, Orihime focuses her reiatsu in her hair clips. She has an offensive type and a defensive type. She uses the offensive for quick, spirit attacks, basically a blast of spiritual energy. The other, she is able to use to heal and defend." It was impressive. I'd never thought she was capable of such a thing. Hime was a truly amazing person, even if she hadn't deemed me trustworthy enough to share her secret with.

"Hm, what about the others? Sado, Uryu and Rukia?"

"Sado focuses his energy in his arms, making them extremely powerful and deadly should you end up on the wrong side of his fist. Uryu is actually a being called a Quincy. Just think of them as evolved humans with exceptional control over their reiatsu to create spiritual weapons with their energy."

"And Rukia? Where does she fit into all of this?"

"Rukia is a Soul Reaper. They are essential to running the Soul Society. The Gotei 13 consists of 13 squads, each headed by a captain and a lieutenant. They reside in what is called Seireitei. And Yamamoto is the commander of all the squads. He makes the big decisions when it comes to battle. We used to have a counsel to decide on other things like disciplinary action and whatnot, but Aizen and his cronies killed them all." He scratched his chin and furrowed his brow, obviously losing track of where he'd been in his explanation. "Anyways, Rukia, she helps guide the lost or trapped souls on the living plane to Soul Society and dispatches any Hollows she may come across in her assigned area. Ichigo is also a Soul Reaper. Kind of. A substitute. He's not a resident of Soul Society. He's part of the Living World."

"I see. It all sounds….very complex. I'm not really interested in how this all came to be, honestly. I'm pissed that he's gotten Hime involved in something so dangerous, but there's no turning back time to fix what that moron has done."

"I'm baaaaack!" Luka's voice snapped me out of my contemplative thoughts as she set our orders in front of us. Urahara had ordered what looked like jasmine tea and a biscuit slathered in blackberry jam. "Please let me know if you need anything else." She gave another bow before leaving us to our drinks and conversation.

"Tell me. Do you know what an Espada is?" His teacup clattered as he set it down forcefully, his eyes trained on me. _Good to know I've got his attention_.

"Where did you hear that word?"

"The asshole I met in Hueco Mundo, Grimmjow, he said he was the Sexta Espada. He's an arrancar, right?" I dipped one of my macaroons into my hot chocolate and took a bite. _Mm, vanilla._

"You wouldn't be wrong. Arrancars are evolved Hollows. However, they did not evolve by themselves. Aizen is a former Soul Reaper who went rogue. He's figured out a way to give Hollows shinigami attributes, meaning they have taken on humanoid forms and can wield zanpakto. Zanpakto are the swords shinigami use to slay Hollows and release souls. Each has its own name and special power. It is up to the shinigami to figure out how to wield their partner in battle. The Espadas are what you would call Aizen's generals. Those directly in service to a particular Espada are called fraccions and the small fry under them are numeros. I'm impressed you got away from one of the Espada."

"I didn't. We just argued back and forth, he thought I was amusing and created a garganta for me to get back."

"That's….odd. Did he say anything about Aizen?"

"Just that I was lucky that Aizen had given him and the others coordinates to Karakura. They're probably planning an attack in the near future, if what you've said is true."

"That's very troubling news, indeed." His tea sat forgotten and growing cold as he fingered the head of his cane, deep in thought. "Sora, did you -"

"Yukimura, what the hell are you doing here with Old Man Urahara?"

"Urg, stupid Strawberry! Can't you see I'm having a conversation here! It's rude to - oh, hi, Orihime." I gave her a shy smile, uncertain of where we stood after the other day. She gave me a confused smile in return, as Ichigo continued to make a scene.

"Hey, seriously, what are you -"

"Yukimura?" My eyes immediately locked onto my well of information. His eyes were wide in shock as he gazed at me, looking at me as if he were seeing me for the first time. "So that's it. Yukimura Sora." He leaned over the table, invading my personal bubble. "What was your mother's name?"

"My mom? Uh, Suzuha. Why? Did you know her?"

"Yes, yes I knew Suzuha from my days back in Soul Society." His attention flickered for a moment to Ichigo and Orihime. "Ichigo, it really is rude to interrupt. I'll be with you in a moment. Go to my shop and wait for me there."

"But -" Without saying a word, he gave the orange-haired teen a single look that both shut him up and motivated him to leave the premises, dragging Hime along behind him.

"Now, where were we? Yes, I knew your mother. She was a Soul Reaper. I didn't see her again until she moved to the Living World. She came to me looking for a gigai for herself and treatment for you. A gigai, by the way is what shinigami have to use if staying for extended amounts of time in the Living World. Like right now, I'm inhabiting a gigai. Most humans cannot detect shinigamis nor Hollows. That's why I created these vessels."

"Makes sense, I guess. So, I was sick?"

"Yes. You had very high levels of reiatsu for a child. Your body couldn't handle it, resulting in a fever. Your body couldn't cool down because of the strain your body was under, trying to contain your spiritual energy. I sealed it away per Suzuha's request. I never saw either of you again after that."

"So you know what I am. You can unseal my reiatsu."

"Yes and no. Yes, I know what you are. I cannot unseal your powers at this time though. Your mother left me a letter with instructions before she died. I am not allowed to release the seal until you turn 18. I cannot disclose any details about what you are or where you came from either until that time."

"That's bullshit! Tell me now!"

"You're not ready yet, Sora. I promised to respect your mother's wishes concerning this matter. I don't plan on going back on my word."

"Tch. Fine. I turn 18 in a few months anyways. Be a stingy bastard! See if I care!" I'd had enough of his patronizing, arrogant attitude. Reaching into my bag, I drew out a few bills and dropped them on the table for Luka. "Just wait, old man. You'll regret this. You're playing games with my life! You're not kami, Urahara Kisuke, far from it! Have fun dicking around with the stupid Strawberry!" Lifting my bag onto my shoulder, I swiftly made my exit, fuming at what had just transpired. _HOW DARE HE?! How dare he play games with MY life! I deserve answers!_ I swiped angrily at my eyes, tearing up in frustration. _DAMN HIM!_ I felt hurt and angry, not just at my newest headache of an acquaintance, but at my mother as well. She was supposed to be a normal, human woman. She was a waitress for kami's sake! Now I've learned that not only am I not human, but my mother was never who I thought she was. She had a secret life that I had never known about, that she had never thought to share with me. Secrets were all around me. Everyone in my life was lying to me. Well, maybe not Tatsuki.

"Um, Sora-chan?"

"Not now, Hime." I didn't even turn to look at her. My head was spinning with all my newly acquired information. The last thing I needed was to talk about my feelings. "We'll talk later, but not right now. I need to be alone for awhile." Leaving her behind, I made my way to the grocery store by my apartment complex and went through the motions of picking out ingredients for dinner. Remembering my promise to Grimmie, I stopped at the fish section and picked up some tuna and yellowtail. I'd grill them up for us when I got back. He'd like that. After checking out, I made one more stop across the street at the pet shop. Browsing the aisles, I finally found what I'd been looking for. It was an adjustable black collar with a little silver skull tag I could get engraved. "Excuse me, how much to engrave this collar?" The cashier looked up from his magazine, swiping his bangs out of his eyes before pointing towards a machine near the front.

"You purchase it here and then take it to that machine over there. Just insert the tag and follow the prompts."

"Awesome, thanks!" I quickly paid for the collar and made my way to the machine. It was simple enough. Typing out his name and my address, I was finished within minutes. As the tag dropped back down into the slot, I picked it up and ran my fingers over the letters engraved and grinned. I knew he'd probably hate it, but it was the price he'd have to pay for the yummy fish I planned on making for him tonight. I slipped the collar into one of the many bags I was now carrying and finally headed back home.

The sun was just starting to set when I stepped out of the pet store. My apartment was only a block away. Of course, I didn't manage to get back without incident. I'd almost reached my destination when I noticed a young girl struggling to open the gate to her house, her arms loaded down with groceries of her own. Internally cursing myself on the inside, I approached the girl.

"Hey, you need some help there?" I reached over before she could respond and lifted the latch, bumping the gate open with my hip. The girl turned and smiled up at me with her big brown eyes. Her short, light brown hair was pinned back by a single strawberry barrette.

"Thank you so much! My brother usually helps me out with the shopping, but he got called away for some kind of emergency this afternoon. Would it be too much to ask you to help me get these inside? My dad is still working at the clinic and my sister is probably heading back from soccer practice."

"Of course, I'd be happy to help. I'm Yukimura Sora, by the way."

"Nice to meet you, Yukimura-san. I'm Kurosaki Yuzu." I had just started to open her front door for her when I froze at the sound of her surname.

"Kurosaki? As in Kurosaki Ichigo?"

"Oh! You know my brother! Are you in the same class?" She hadn't noticed my odd reaction and was still smiling happily up at me. She wasn't much shorter than me actually. If I hadn't been wearing heels, she'd come up to my shoulders. Shrugging off my distaste for the older sibling, I returned her smile and pushed the door wide open for her.

"Yeah. We don't really get along. I never knew he had siblings though." I grabbed a few of the heavier bags she was holding, shifting my own to my left hand. "And you can just call me Sora. Your brother is the only one who really calls me Yukimura." Laughing, I sent a playful wink her way.

"That's too bad. He's really a nice guy when you get to know him. He just likes to act tough. It's probably my dad's fault."

"What do you me-"

"ICHIGOOOOOOO!" I barely avoided the flying kick that erupted from behind the front door I'd just opened. The attacker landed face first on the sidewalk. _Ah, so this must be the dad. Guess that answers that question_.

"Dad! What were you thinking?! You could have really hurt Sora! Apologize, right now!" It was amusing to see the girl transform into a scolding mother figure. _That's right. She probably has taken on that role._ I frowned, irritated with myself for forgetting that Mrs. Kurosaki had passed away before I'd arrived in Karakura. _Guess she's trained herself to take on the duties of motherhood. It's sad. She's too young for that kind of responsibility. Such a heavy burden, yet she doesn't seem to let it bother her. That stupid Strawberry should help out more, ease some of the responsibility._

"I'm sorry, Miss. I thought you were my son."

"That doesn't make it okay! Stop doing these kind of things to Ichigo!" Yuzu pouted up at him, her words probably repeated a dozen times before this incident. After a few moments, she sighed and motioned towards me. "This is Yukimura Sora. She's a classmate of Ichigo's, and she was helping me with the groceries."

"Heh, sorry Yuzu. I didn't know today was shopping day." He focused his attention on me and held out his hand. "I'm Kurosaki Isshin. Thanks for looking out for my daughter." I looked from his hand to my arms, weighed down with groceries. He flushed with embarrassment and moved closer to alleviate my load.

"It was no problem. Um, here." I held out the other half of Yuzu's groceries to him and waited for him to grab them up. "I have to get going. I have someone waiting to be fed back home. He'll probably be pretty upset with me for being this late already. It was nice meeting you both!"

"Bye, Sora! Thanks again for your help!" Yuzu called after me as I made my way back towards my apartment. _How odd. Never thought I'd run into the stupid Strawberry's family. They seemed nice enough though. Strange, but nice._ Gazing up at the sky, I tracked the flight path of a sparrow as it landed in a nearby tree. It was then promptly greeted by the excited chirping of the baby birds in the nest, welcoming their mother home. _It must be nice to come home to someone, to be missed when you're away._ A feeling of loneliness crept through me, and I tried to shake it off. I was fine. I was always fine. Shifting the groceries into one arm, I dug my keys out of my bag and quickly pushed the front door open.

"I'm home." Expecting the usual silence, my heart stuttered when I got a reply.

"Mreow." Sitting in the entryway with a displeased look on his face, Grimmie voiced his displeasure over my late arrival.

"Were you - you were waiting for me?" Instead of answering, the cat turned around and headed for the kitchen. When I remained in the doorway, he turned and sent me an annoyed look.

"Mreow!" He was getting impatient with me. Letting out a shaky laugh, I closed the door, slipped my shoes off, and followed my bossy companion. I quickly got to work on preparing our dinner. I sniffled as I started dicing up an onion for my portion of the meal. _I'm sure it's just the onion's fault. I'm not crying. Why would I be crying?_ My mental argument fell apart as I felt Grimmie threading his way around my legs, rubbing against them with his face, excited about the smell of the sizzling fish I had cooking in the pan nearby. _No, it's not the onions. Maybe it's just my imagination or wishful thinking but….it was like he was saying 'Welcome home. I missed you.'_ Being careful not to get my finger anywhere near my eyes, I rubbed my sleeve against them to rid them of the tears pricking the corners of my eyes.

"It's good to be home."

 **Special thanks to those who have reviewed my story so far, I'm talking about you XD-kaycee lol Seriously though, I'd love to hear from all of you: good, bad, random comments. Thanks again for reading! :3**


	4. Anger Management

**Chapter 4 already! I'm on a roll, guys! This chapter was so much fun to write! I tried out something new with this chapter with the point of view, so let me know what you think about it. *Disclaimer* As always, I do not own any characters from Bleach, only my OC.**

It wasn't until after dinner that I realized I was missing something. I could have sworn I had purchased a bag of potatoes. _Shit! That's the bag that had Grimmie's collar in it!_ Sighing, I shrugged it off and went to check on the cat in question. He was laid out on the couch on his side, his little tummy looking a bit round after his recent feasting. I took a seat next to him and leaned my head back, closing my eyes. Grimmie slowly made his way into my lap and nibbled on my fingers, signalling that he demanded my attention. My fingers slid over his soft fur and soon he was curled up in my lap, purring in content.

"Hn, and people say I'm tsundere. I wonder if that means the other Grimmjow is a big softy at heart too. It would make sense. He did let me go instead of killing me, which apparently is strange for an arrancar to do." I wondered what he was up to. He had been an enormous dick when we met, but I couldn't help being curious about him. He'd saved me, threatened me, mocked me, and helped me get home. He seemed like a pretty complex individual. _I want to see him again._ Opening my eyes, I was surprised to see a garganta sitting smack dab in the middle of my living room. "Um. That definitely wasn't there a moment ago." Little Grimmjow jumped to his feet and ran straight at the portal, disappearing inside. "SHIT! Grimmjow, you little bastard, what do you think you're doing?!" Hopping up from the couch, I chased after him and back into the world of Hueco Mundo.

 ***Grimmjow's POV***

It had been a day since that strange woman had appeared outside of Las Noches. For some reason, I couldn't stop thinking about her. She was by far the most annoying creature I've ever had the displeasure of encountering. She actually had the balls to challenge me. One thing's for sure, the woman had a mouth on her. I'd decided to take a walk outside the walls to clear my head.

"Lucky it was me who came across her. Nnoitra would have diced her up good." For some reason, that thought was upsetting. Why did I care what happened to that human trash? She was beneath me. She was weak. She was….familiar. That's what it was. Something about the woman stirred something up in me. It was impossible though. Hollows don't have memories outside of what happens after becoming one. That's why I couldn't kill her. She had piqued my interest. Her attempts at being brave and competent were amusing. Once I figured out what it was about her that caught my interest, she would lose her appeal and I could kill her. Until then, she would provide some damn good entertainment. I remember seeing her split lip and the fiery look in her eyes when she told me she'd gotten it in a fight with a guy. Not only that, but that she had won her fight. It made me want to test her myself, see how far I could push her until she broke. I grinned to myself, eyes wide with excitement.

"Grimmjow, you little bastard, I'm going to kill you!"

"The hell?" Looking around, I caught sight of that crazy woman, barrelling right towards me. _Is she seriously looking to fight me?_ My hand strayed to the hilt of Pantera, but I removed it when I saw that she wasn't even armed. _Is she really that big of an idiot? Does she WANT to die?_

"OI! The hell do you think you're talking to, woman?!" I ordered as she approached. She wasn't even looking at me. She froze upon hearing my voice and looked over at me with startled violet eyes.

"Oh, it's you. Sorry, I don't have time to chat. I'm a little busy." She turned away from me and started shouting again. "Baka neko, you better get over here before you get eaten! I'm not saving you from hungry Hollows!" With that, she ran off again, ignoring me completely. I didn't know whether to be confused or angry. I settled on angry and took up the chase. I didn't have to go far. She was standing under a dead tree, looking up into the twisted branches at something. "GRIMMJOW! Grimmjow, get over here now! I swear, I am THIS close to skinning you alive!"

"Quit your screaming, woman! I'm right here! The fuck do you want?" Grabbing her by the shoulder, I spun her towards me, pissed that she'd been ignoring my presence while calling my name incessantly. She looked up at me, her face turning a bright shade of red.

"Um, I actually wasn't calling for you."

"Yeah, you were. Pretty sure it was my name you were screaming all over the place like a damn banshee. Now, what do you want? Why are you fucking here, woman?" I didn't think it was possible, but her face flushed even more. She wouldn't meet my eyes either.

"My cat. I guess I accidentally made another garganta, and he ran through it. I was, uh, calling for him, not you."

"You were -" Looking from her to the branches above, I could make out a small feline form, peering down at us from the branch directly above. My grip on her shoulder tightened. "His name -"

"Um, he reminded me of you, so I kind of, maybe namedhimafteryou." She muttered the last bit quickly, but I caught it.

"You named your fucking cat after me? The hell is this shit?" Looking from her flustered face to the smug feline in the tree, I felt a growl rumbling up through my stomach until I released it in a roar of uncontrolled laughter. "The fuck is wrong with you, woman? I threatened to kill you and you name your damn cat after me." Releasing her from my grasp, I doubled over in an attempt to stem my laughing and catch my breath. This woman was too much. I could feel the tension crackling in the air, signalling the small female was getting angry.

"Fuck you! For your information, the only reason I named him that was because he's a pain in the ass jerk like you! Don't get the wrong idea. I don't like you. His name is merely a testament of my utter distaste for you and your assholish ways."

"Tch, no need to be shy. If you wanted my attention, all you had to do was ask." I teased, enjoying the blush still present across her cheeks. She crossed her arms under her chest and puffed out her cheeks in annoyance. Hueco Mundo wouldn't be such a dull waste of space if I had her to torment all the time. I smirked as I dug my hands into the pockets in my hakama.

"I'm not interested in you at all! Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got a cat to capture." Turning away from me, she started to climb the tree. I watched, thoroughly amused and aware of what was soon to come. She may be small, but the tree was dead and it wouldn't support her weight if she - _CRACK! And there she goes. Now what's she gonna do?_ "Sonofabitch." She muttered from where she lay on her back, looking up at my namesake, staring coolly at her from his perch, tail swishing back and forth. "Jump down, you fucking furball! I'll catch you." The only response she received was a derisive snort from the feline. "WHY YOU-"

"As entertaining as this is, you're going to call attention to yourself if you keep screaming your head off. The other Espada aren't as nice as I am, ya know?" She sat up and stiffened at that. _Ah, looks like someone has learned a little more since our last talk. Wonder who clued her in._

"I'm not leaving without Grimmie."

"Hn, fine." Ignoring her squeak of surprise, I jumped up and grabbed the cat by the back of its neck before landing beside her.

"MREOOOOOW!" The thing yowled and thrashed in my grip, hissing its displeasure with me. Bringing him closer for inspection, I went to poke its pudgy stomach. Its blue eyes flashed with a familiar look of psychotic pleasure before he leaned forward and sank his fangs into my finger.

"I like you. You got guts, Grimmjow. You were well-named." This whole situation was incredibly amusing. I hadn't had this much fun since I was an Adjuchas Hollow, enjoying one of my many killing sprees.

"Are you fucking bonding with my cat?" Turning my gaze back to the woman, I smirked at the look of jealousy and disbelief on her face. "Give him back before you corrupt what little morals he has! You're a bad influence!" She reached out to take him from me, unknowingly putting herself into his destructive sights. In seconds, he had released my finger and latched onto her hand. "MOTHERFUCKER! GRIMMJOW! You do NOT bite the hand that feeds you! Cough up that expensive yellowtail fish I bought you for dinner! You don't deserve it!" The cat released her hand and settled for a truculent glare.

"Tch, you gonna just take that? I was expecting more from you." I was disappointed in the lack of fight from the fierce feline. _Guess he must really like this yellowtail shit_.

"Don't encourage him, Grimmjow!" She snapped at me as she caught hold of the cat in question, securing him firmly in her arms.

"Hn, whatever. Now that you got your furball, you can get the fuck out. Can't believe you actually came back here after what happened last time. How stupid are you, exactly?"

"Keep it up, asshole. There's room at the top of my shit list for you. Kurosaki and Urahara could use some company." Her demeanor reminded me of the cat she was currently holding. _If she had a tail, I bet it'd be twitching back and forth_. Grinning, I leaned forward, locking eyes with her.

"Whatever you say, Kitten."

"You arrogant piece of - just make me a garganta so I don't have to look at your stupid, smug face anymore!"

"You asking me for a favor, Kitten?" I used her new nickname, gaining immense satisfaction from the angry twitch she responded with. "I'm pretty sure I told you that last time was a one-time deal."

"Open the fucking garganta now before I release this hellion on your face, you worthless excuse for an arrancar!" Her words ignited the ever-present fuse to my temper, causing me to explode. Grabbing her by the throat, I slammed her into the tree. She dropped the cat, which crouched defensively once it hit the ground.

"NO ONE FUCKING TALKS TO ME LIKE THAT!" I screamed in her face, enjoying the look of fear making its way to her eyes. Leaning forward, I inhaled her scent, feeling a shudder of pleasure roll through me. "You smell like fear, Kitten. Do you understand now? Do you understand the difference between you and me? You're pathetic, weak….fragile." With that last word, I squeezed a bit harder. She let out a small gasp, trying to get air into her lungs through her constricted airways. It wouldn't take much to end her. Just a little more and I could crush her windpipe in my hand. She squeezed her eyes shut, her nails digging frantically into my hand. I growled, "LOOK AT ME!" When her eyes had focused back on me, I grinned ear to ear. "I am the predator in this situation, and you are my prey. Do you realize how easily I could crush you right now?" Her only response was a weak laugh and a defiant smirk, as she stopped struggling. The fear was still present, but she had hidden it well now. Feeling a pulling at the bottom of my leg, I glanced down to find my namesake viciously attacking me. Looking between cat and owner once again, I sighed and slowly released my hold on the infuriating woman before me. "You're both idiots." I turned my back on them and motioned for both to follow. "I'm not your fucking slave, so I won't make a garganta back for you. Pay attention and I'll tell you how to make one yourself, woman."

"Umm…" The woman had caught up to me, the cat secure in her arms again. She was avoiding my gaze though, which was odd for her. Usually, she met me straight on with those confident eyes, glittering with mischief and mayhem. _I must have frightened her more than I thought._ For some reason, that didn't please me the way I thought it would. It made that feeling of familiarity pulse, making me feel almost guilty for scaring her. Almost. "Thank you."

"Wha-" _Have I gone deaf? Did she just thank me? What kind of kinky shit is this woman into?_ "You like getting choked out or something?" I questioned, glancing sideways at her.

"N-No!" The flustered look was back on her face, and she finally looked up at me. "I just realized I never really thanked you for getting me home before. I guess it was kind of rude of me to demand that of you again. Sorry bout that. And, uh, thanks again for teaching me to do it myself." I could tell that each word was painful for her. She had a sense of pride that I had managed to trample during our most recent confrontation. It wasn't easy for her to admit those things, but she had. _Heh, that's kind of cute. SHIT! No, it's not. That word isn't even in my vocabulary!_ Irritated with myself, I scratched the back of my head and looked up at the sky of Hueco Mundo. It was dark like always. Running a hand through my hair, I could feel the tension easing out of me. _The hell is this woman doing to me? The sooner I get her out of here, the sooner I can get back to normal._ But did I want normal? I'd gone from being a king to becoming the lapdog of some asshole shinigami. Everything I'd sacrificed, everything I'd worked for to become stronger, and I'm at the bottom of the food chain again.

"Um, Grimmjow? Are you okay?"

"Hm? The fuck are you talking about?" I bit back, turning my attention back to her. She'd gotten closer without me realizing, her eyes studying me, standing a few inches away.

"You looked….sad. Kind of like you were thinking about better days or something. Are you unhappy here?"

"Tch, who would be happy living in a depressing place like this, Kitten?" She obviously wasn't taking the bait, but she dropped the subject and backed away.

"Well, if you ever need a change in scenery, you're more than welcome to visit me and Grimmjow Jr. here." She closed one eye and stuck her tongue out at me. _I just choked the life out of her and now she's offering to let me stay with her? This woman is giving me whiplash. I'll never understand females, especially this one._ Shaking off my shock at her friendly offer, I gave her a noncommittal grunt in response.

"C'mere." I grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her closer. I'd noticed it more than once, but she was tiny compared to me. She only came up to about my chest. "Now listen up, I'm only saying this once. All you have to do to create a garganta is focus on the place you want to go. Simple as that. What were you thinking about the first two times?"

"Getting away somewhere quiet, away from Karakura, the first time. The second time, I -" That flushed look came back to her face as she pressed her lips together, keeping her next words locked away. Smirking down at her, I decided to tease my newest playtoy again.

"It's okay, Kitten, I know you were thinking about me."

"I WAS NOT! I just- I was just- SHUT UP, BAKA!" Her reaction was even better than anticipated. There must be some truth in it if she'd gotten so flustered.

"Whatever. Doesn't matter. Just focus on where you want to go and picture it in your head. If it helps, you can close your eyes." She did as I said, and sooner than I thought, after a few failed attempts, a garganta opened up a few feet away. "There ya go. Well done, Kitten."

"Heh, you're not a bad teacher. Thanks again for the help, Grimmjow." She smiled up at me before heading towards the garganta. She surprised me though when she stopped before it and turned back to look me in the eye. "I know we're kinda on opposite sides of whatever confrontation is brewing between the shinigami and Aizen, but I just want you to know that you're okay in my book. From what I've heard, Aizen is a serious dick. I'm sure Hueco Mundo would be much better off with someone like you in charge." Her eyes were sparkling like gemstones with that mischievous spark making an appearance once again. "You could be King of Hueco Mundo. King Grimmjow. It has a nice ring to it, ne?" Before I could respond, she was gone. Looking down, I saw my hand outstretched towards where she had stood. _Why is this happening? Who are you, Kitten? Why can't I bring myself to kill you or hate you?_ I could honestly say I had never met a more interesting creature in my life.

"Until next time, Kitten."

 ***Sora's POV***

The trip back to the Living World was uneventful. Grimmie and I made it back just as the sun was rising. _Shit. I didn't realize I spent so long over there chasing Grimmie and talking to Grimmjow._ At the thought of the surly, dangerous arrancar, I smiled. He was definitely an interesting guy. To say I'd been scared when he attacked me would be an understatement. I had been terrified. I knew how to defend myself, but the amount of raw power behind his hold had made me weak in the knees with pure, unadulterated fear. He knew it and seemed to enjoy it, getting a sick pleasure from seeing me so weak. It made me even more angry at Urahara for refusing to unseal my reiatsu. Who knew how much stronger I could be with that kind of untapped power at my disposal? _I'm so challenging him to a fight when that happens._ The thought of fighting Grimmjow was both terrifying and exciting, with excitement coming out on top by a smidge.

I carried Grimmie into the kitchen with me before setting him down, grabbing a piece of leftover fish from dinner, and placing it into his food bowl.

"You more than earned that tonight. Thanks for coming to my rescue. You were ferocious. I definitely wouldn't want to fight you, oh mighty Grimmjow." Puffing up at the praise, he nodded before digging into his well-earned reward. "Guess I should get ready for school." I yawned and stumbled towards the bedroom. Running late already, I threw on my uniform and tied my hair up in a messy bun before grabbing my bag and keys off the counter. "Bye, Grimmie! See you when I get home!"

"Mreow." He uttered his nonchalant farewell. Smiling to myself, I dashed out the door.

School was chaotic when I arrived, everyone crowding around some new kid. Forging ahead, I found my seat and dropped my bag down, sinking into my chair and closing my eyes for a quick nap before class got started. I had just started to drift off when I felt someone's presence hovering above me.

"What do you want, Hime?" Opening my eyes, I found her looking down at me nervously. I'm sure my appearance didn't help. My hair and clothes were disheveled, I had dark circles under my eyes from lack of sleep, and a faint bruising around my neck thanks to Grimmjow getting handsy earlier.

"I just wanted to talk about what's been going on lately. Ichigo told me you know about Soul Society and everything. I thought you might have some questions for me." Her smile was shy and cautious, as if prepared for me to lash out at her.

"Orihime….you pretty much lied to me. You kept this whole part of your life a secret. I told you everything. I told you about the ghosts, my nightmares, and…Aoi. You never even once thought to include me? What you're doing with Kurosaki, it's dangerous. Being with him will put you in situations where you will have to choose whether to fight, run, or die. I know you. You're not a fighter. So that only leaves running or dying. Except, again, I know you. You're too loyal and stupid to run away, so in the end you'll die." Her eyes were swimming with tears, but I pressed on. She may not want to hear this, but I had never backed down from telling her the truth before. _She thinks this is just a game. She doesn't realize the life and death of it all. She's like a princess that's been locked in a tower, so naive and optimistic that everything will turn out okay in the end._ "I'm not saying this to be hurtful, Hime. These are the facts. You're important to me, and I don't want you getting hurt. So please, think about distancing yourself from Kurosaki in the future."

"I will - I'll take your words into consideration. Sorry to bother you, Sora-chan." As quickly as she'd appeared, she slipped away. Sighing, I gave up on my nap. I'd never get to sleep after that. Class started and the hours ticked by. I ate lunch by myself in the courtyard before finishing out the day. Just as I was packing my bag to leave, I felt someone tap me on the shoulder. He wasn't tall by any means, maybe a few inches more than me. His hair was blond and framed his face, and his smile was giving me the heebie jeebies. _I think I prefer Grimmjow's psychotic grin to this weirdo._

"Can I help you, new guy? I was just getting ready to leave."

"You're Yukimura Sora, right?"

"Depends on who wants to know." I went back to packing up my bag, swinging it up and onto my shoulder.

"I'm Hirako Shinji. Tell me, you're one of us, aren't you?"

"You'll have to be more specific there, Shinji."

"A Vizard."

"And here I thought I'd learned all the cool Soul Society lingo. I'm afraid that's a new one for me, and I can't answer because I don't know."

"You must be. You've got that dark reiatsu pulsing beneath the surface. I can feel it." Curious, I decided to humor the guy. No harm in pumping him for some more information.

"Alright, I'll bite. What's a Vizard?"

"A Vizard is a Soul Reaper who has been infected with Hollow attributes. The flip side of arrancars, basically."

"Huh, weird. Not sure if I can join your club then. Can't ever recall being a shinigami. I grew up here in the Living World."

"That doesn't mean anything. Ichigo is a Vizard too, ya know."

"That so? Well, aren't you a plethora of useful information?" Smiling at each other, I was about to ask about unsealing reiatsu when the temperature dropped dramatically. I gasped and clutched at my chest. "Something is wrong." When I looked up, Shinji was gone. I was alone in the classroom. _Weird. What is this?_ Shaking off the chills, I left the classroom and started to walk home. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't rid myself of the feeling I was missing something. By the time I reached my apartment, it was eating at me with a vengeance. Even Grimmie's welcome home meow couldn't distract me from this unsettling notion that something was wrong.

With dinner made and eaten, I headed for the couch to distract myself with Grimmie, but before I could settle in next to him, I heard my phone going off. _Odd. I never get calls at this time._ Curious, I grabbed my phone out of my bag and answered.

"Hello?"

"Yukimura." My eyes widened in shock. I pulled the phone away and looked at the screen. Caller ID said that it was Orihime calling me. So….why was Kurosaki calling me on her phone?

"What have you done?" My voice was quiet, shaking with barely controlled fury. There were only a handful of reasons he would be calling me on my best friend's phone and none of them were looking too good for him.

"Urahara told me you know about Soul Society. The arrancar….two of them appeared in the park earlier. Orihime was there. Tatsuki was as well." My heart was pounding against my ribcage. _No. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. This isn't happening. This can't be happening again. Please, kami._ "I - she's hurt pretty bad. My dad's patching her up, but I just thought you should know. Tatsuki will be okay too. She just needs to rest. Dad sent her home already."

"...I'll be there in five minutes." I hung up on him and stared at the flashing screen for a few moments before pulling myself together. Glancing down, I could see Grimmie gazing up at me, his head cocked to the side. "I have to go out again. You're welcome to come along, but it won't be pretty once we get to where we're going. You might not like what you see." He let out a yawn and stretched before launching himself up and onto my shoulder. "You must be bored if that's your answer."

"Mreow." He nipped at my ear. I'd have to transfer him to my bag once I arrived at the Kurosaki Clinic. Grabbing my keys and bag from the counter, I slipped my shoes back on and locked up behind me as I left. My thoughts were racing during the short walk there. My emotions had me on edge, unstable. I kept flitting between terror and an anger so intense that my shaking had ceased and turned into a deadly calm. First thing was first, I needed to see Orihime.

I arrived at the clinic quickly. Without knocking, I let myself into the building and made a beeline for the room I felt my best friend was residing in at the moment. My instincts never led me astray. She was laying on a futon, her face bruised, her arm wrapped and in a sling. I sank down beside her and took her hand gently in my own.

"Thank kami, you're alive. You had me worried there, Hime." My voice came out soft and shaky. Memories of my past were flashing before my eyes, as I stared down at her battered and bruised body. "I hate to say I told you so." I could feel my voice crack. "Stupid Orihime. You should have run or taken my advice and stayed away from all this stuff. You're not Xena, Warrior Princess. If anything, you'd be Snow White or Sleeping Beauty. You never listen. I just wanted to keep you safe. Why didn't you listen to me?!" I had accidentally tightened my hold, causing her to groan in her sleep and shift. "Sorry. Sorry, Hime. I'm sorry I wasn't there to protect you."

"It wasn't your fault, Yukimura." I stiffened at the sound of his voice. Fully aware of the raging emotions swirling within me, Grimmie hopped off my shoulder and curled up next to Orihime on the futon. I slowly made my way back to my feet, dropping my bag to the floor as I quickly turned and sank my fist into Kurosaki's stomach. Even the look of shock in his eyes didn't lessen my fury. It didn't bring me joy like it usually did. It just made me angrier. _It's not enough. He needs to understand Hime's pain. He needs to suffer the way she has suffered._ Drawing my fist back, I made like I was going to come at him from the right before slugging him with my left across the right side of his face. He stumbled back into the hallway, bracing himself against the wall and pressing his hand against the side of his face, drawing it back to find blood from his now split lip coating his fingers. I didn't waste my breath trying to tear him down verbally. I was a silent machine, focused solely on making him bleed more. He caught my next punch, only to topple to the floor when I kicked his legs out from under him. In seconds, I was on him. Gone were my lessons at the dojo, I was fighting off pure instinct and rage. Again and again, I slammed my fists into his face. Blood was gushing from his nose and lip, but his attempts to fight me off were halfhearted at best. _That's right. You know you deserve this, you selfish bastard! It's all your fault!_

"AAAAAAAGH!" I screamed in frustration. "WHY?! Why did it have to be her?! Where were you? Why didn't you protect her, you stupid Strawberry?! She's always making you out to be some big hero, but you're not! You're just a stupid kid who's in too deep, dragging everybody else down with him! You're a pathetic excuse for a man, Kurosaki! I HATE YOU, KUROSAKI ICHIGO! I HATE YOU!" Like a child throwing a tantrum, I felt myself being lifted off of Kurosaki's still form.

"SORA, THAT'S ENOUGH!" I stilled at Urahara's shout, watching as he approached us. "Tessai, you may let her down now. I'm sure she can behave herself." The bear of a man who had been holding me set me down, patting my head before wandering off elsewhere. Urahara was staring at me with his dangerous eyes. "I thought you were better than that, starting fights outside a patient's room." I bit my lip hard at his criticism, making it bleed. "I understand you're upset, but this is not how you should deal with it."

"Stop! Just stop! Don't tell me how I should and shouldn't deal with things. You're not my father or my guardian. My mother might have entrusted you with some instructions regarding me, but that does not give you the authority to dictate how I act or feel. I won't be a part of this little lecture you probably have for me nor will I stick around to play war with you and your little shinigami friends." My fists were clenched tightly at my side as I stared straight ahead. "You don't really care about me or Orihime, or even Kurosaki. We're all just pawns in your sick game. I see that look in your eyes, Urahara Kisuke. You're a manipulative bastard. You play to win, no matter the cost. Every action is calculated. I'm sure you made a great captain in the Gotei 13, but you make a terrible human." His sharp intake of breath was all I needed to confirm my suspicions. _No one with that much arrogance and scheming is going to answer to a higher up. No, he was one of the big dogs before he got chased out._ "Maybe you have everyone else fooled, but not me. This war isn't as black and white as you make it out to be. There are other players on the board, but your only concern is taking out the self-made King, Aizen. Fuck the sacrifices as long as you win the game, right?" I could feel my anger cooling, leaving me feeling numb and cold. Silence lay heavy between us. "I'm leaving now. I'll see myself out." Picking my bag up from the floor, I scooped Grimmie up and place him on my shoulder before leaving the same way I came in, brushing past Urahara without a second glance.

The street lights had flickered to life while I was inside. My body felt heavy and sluggish. Taking a few steps, I stumbled and righted myself.

"Mreow." Grimmie's worried cry had me reaching up to pet him soothingly.

"I'm fine. Just tired. Let's go home, ne?" I called to him, going for a playful tone, but only managing to sound sad and tired. His only response was to nudge my head with his own. "Thanks, Grimmie." The walk was slow-going. By the time I reached my door, I was beyond exhausted. I unlocked the door and Grimmie jumped to the floor, making his way to the bedroom. It had been a long day. Rubbing at the pressure building behind my forehead, I decided to get cleaned up before I went to bed. I trudged towards the bathroom, wincing at my reflection in the mirror. I looked like a severely abused raccoon. Turning on the faucet, I went to wash my face when I noticed the blood. My hands were covered in it from the beating I'd given to Kurosaki. Foregoing my pathetic attempt to get clean at the sink, I turned the shower on and grabbed a towel out of the linen closet. Stripping out of my rumpled uniform, bra, and underwear I jumped under the lukewarm spray. Turning towards the water, I rested my head against the tiled wall and watched as the water started to turn pink, washing Kurosaki's blood from my hands. They ached. I'd have to ice them at some point. The water slowly heated up until I could see the steam coming off my body. It felt nice against my screaming muscles. Closing my eyes, I let the heat seep into me before going about washing my hair and scrubbing the hardships of the day from my body. When I was done, I turned the water off and grabbed up my towel. My wet hair dripped water all over the bathroom floor, as I wrapped the towel around me and stepped out of the shower. I turned off all the lights and quietly padded into the bedroom, grabbing a pair of sleep shorts and an oversized T-shirt to sleep in. Once dressed, I dried my hair the best I could and tossed the wet towel into the hamper. Grimmie was already in bed, but he had left me a decent portion of the mattress to claim as my own. Slipping between the sheets, I closed my eyes reluctantly. I knew this wasn't the end of my shitty day. I would get no restful sleep tonight. I closed my eyes and let the nightmares come.

 **Thank you for reading! Hope you guys are enjoying the story as much as I am! Feel free to review and let me know what you thought about Grimmjow's POV. Also, big thanks to all of you who decided to follow and/or review:**

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	5. Dealing with the Devil

**Hello, lovely readers! Here we are already at Chapter Five! Enjoy! *Disclaimer* As always, I do not own any characters from Bleach, only my OC Sora.**

 ***Sora's POV***

I slept horribly, as I'd expected. Nightmares of Aoi had haunted me through the night, along with new twists, involving Orihime being ripped to shreds by hordes of Hollows, seeing her drowning in her own blood, reaching for me with pleading eyes that asked ' _Why? Why weren't you there?'F_ Glaring up at the ceiling, I released a frustrated sigh before getting ready for the long day ahead of me. I definitely wasn't ready to see my injured best friend, not to mention the idiot who had failed to protect her. Urahara had stopped me from going too far last night, but who knew what would happen if he pissed me off again. I could feel something inside of me shifting, prowling in the dark recesses of my mind, calling out for blood.

Looking up at the mirror, dark shadows accented my violet eyes, which glared angrily back at me. I washed my face, brushed my hair and threw it up into a loose bun, strands of white falling around my face. My nightmares had left me with little appetite. I grabbed an apple from the fridge and tossed the remainder of yesterday's dinner into Grimmie's food bowl before grabbing my bag, cellphone and keys.

"I'll see you when I get home, Grimmie. Watch the house for me, okay?"

"Mreow." He looked up briefly from his food to respond, a miracle if you asked me. I knew his priorities well: food, sleep, mayhem, and then me waaaaaay at the bottom. I didn't mind though. I was just glad to have someone to share my life with and fill my empty apartment. I leaned down and gave him a quick scratch behind the ears as I headed out the door.

I didn't get a chance to talk to Orihime until after homeroom. We had a free period, so I decided to breach the gap that had been created between us due to secrets and the recent drama involving Ichigo. I approached cautiously, much like she had the other day. She looked even more fragile than she had the day before, probably due to the lost and haunted look in her eyes. Noticing my presence, she turned and gave me a tired smile.

"Sora-chan, how are you?"

"Can't complain. I, uh, I came to see you last night. You were out of it."

"Oh?" She frowned and fidgeted in her seat. "How did you -"

"Kurosaki called me from your cell." I sat myself on the edge of her desk and looked her in the eyes. "I'm sorry I wasn't there. I could feel something was off yesterday, but I ignored it. I should have been there for you and Tatsuki." Her eyes widened at my apology.

"It's not your fault, Sora-chan. Really. I wasn't strong enough. I should have - I didn't listen to what you said yesterday. You were….right. I'm weak." Hime's body sagged at the confession. "But I - I don't want to be weak. I don't want to rely on you or Ichigo to protect me." It wasn't what I wanted to hear. I had hoped this recent development would scare her off from any further confrontations, but it seemed it had only affirmed her resolve to put herself out there in the line of fire. Her decision solidified my own. If I couldn't talk her down from this, I'd have to seek out a way to gain more power. My last run-in with Grimmjow made it painfully obvious that I was out of my league. I needed to get stronger. I needed to be able to protect those I cared about. "Sora-chan?"

The ringing of the bell and Orihime's questioning tone snapped me out of my thoughts. I smiled at Hime and stood up, making my way back to my seat. Looking back, I realized her focus had shifted from me to the sudden entry of one orange-haired shinigami. I sighed as I took my seat, promising myself to seek her out during the lunch break and continue our conversation.

By the time lunch rolled around, I was ready for a nap. The lack of sleep over the past 48 hours was mentally and physically taxing. I was on edge and sluggish. It didn't help that there were a bunch of strange people that had suddenly appeared in our classroom. I assumed they were Soul Reapers, sent as backup after the recent attack. It was none of my concern. I'd finally located Orihime and had started to call out to her when I noticed she wasn't alone. Quickly ducking behind a pillar in the breezeway, I peeked out to find her talking with Kurosaki and Rukia.

"Um, Ichigo?" He was looking away from her, bandaged up pretty good himself from the multiple beatings he took yesterday. I secretly relished in the fact that his face was still swollen from the beating he'd received from me. He was obviously still feeling guilty about what had happened to Hime. _Good. Let the stupid Strawberry wallow in self-loathing for a while. He deserves it after what he put her through!_ Rukia's voice cut into my inner rant.

"He's sorry he's so weak!" I glanced out from my hiding spot to find the shorter shinigami forcing Kurosaki's head down in apology. He wasn't fighting it, though an embarrassed flush was painting his cheeks. I held a hand over my mouth to quell my snickering. When she released him, he lifted his head and met Orihime's gaze head on.

"I'll get stronger, and next time….I'll definitely protect you." I scoffed at his chivalrous vow. His words meant nothing. That was one thing about the stupid Strawberry that annoyed the hell out of me. He was always talking such a big game, but almost never backed it up. No, I'd handle this situation. I would be the one to keep my best friend safe.

Having heard enough, I turned away and headed for the courtyard, where I found Tatsuki eating her lunch on the steps. I waved a hello and settled down beside her, leaning back and enjoying the feel of the afternoon sun beaming down on my face. If only I could curl up under the nearest tree and sleep the rest of the day away. Shaking off the cloying grips of drowsiness, I looked over at my friend. Her injuries didn't seem to be as extensive as Hime's. Just a few bumps and bruises.

"You okay there, Tatsuki? Someone get the better of you after all that practice?" I teased, making light of the otherwise serious situation. She smirked at me from around her bite of rice, flipping me off. I laughed and tugged at a strand of her short, dark hair before stealing one of her onigiri. This earned me a playful glare, which she followed up with a quick jab to my side.

"Can't really remember what happened exactly. It's not me I'm worried about though. Did you see Orihime? I asked her what happened, but she just did that thing where she give you that dopey smile and changes the subject."

"Hn, sounds like her. Don't worry about it." I mumbled through a mouthful of rice and what tasted like pickled plum. "I'm sure she has her reasons for keeping secrets. I can't help but worry about her though." I twirled a stray piece of hair around my finger in contemplation. Shoving the rest of the rice ball in my mouth, I earned a disgusted look from my friend. I made a face at her before leaning my head against her shoulder.

"I'm worried about you too, ya know." I looked up to find Tatsuki studying me in concern. "You haven't shown up at the dojo for the past week or so and you look like you haven't been sleeping. If there's something troubling you, you can always talk to me about it, Sora."

"Thanks, Tatsuki. I appreciate it. I'm fine though. Just trouble sleeping, like you said." I gave her a reassuring smile, wishing I could confide in her about all this craziness taking place around us. Tatsuki could sense the supernatural, but I never wanted her to get involved like Orihime had. I would keep her out of everything for as long as I could. I'd failed Hime, but I'd be damned if I let both my friends throw themselves at the mercy of the monsters skulking in the shadows. I stood up and stretched, tilting my face up to meet the sun. "I think I'm gonna go home early. Could you let the teacher know?"

"Um, sure. Rest up and feel better, okay? I miss my sparring partner."

"Heh, sure thing. Keep an eye on our princess, ne?"

"Always." Tatsuki grinned and waved as I made my exit. It was time to move forward with my plan. It was time to make a visit to one, Hirako Shinji.

The plan was simple. After I found the grinning fool, I'd get some more information about these Vizards he'd mentioned. He had said 'one of us' when asking me if I was a Vizard, which meant there was more than just him. He sounded pretty knowledgeable, so hopefully he'd be able to help me with my seal problem. If not, then surely one of the others could lend me some insight into how to unblock my reiatsu. After I had sensed the arrival of the arrancars yesterday, I figured out how to discern spiritual pressure. It was like a mental dam had been broken, allowing all these new sensations to flow through me. Even if my reiatsu was sealed, I could tell it was fighting to break free. I was getting stronger, little by little, but not fast enough.

Filtering through the different spiritual pressures in the area, I dismissed the weaker ones and focused on a group of high level pressure near an abandoned construction site downtown. It didn't take me long to find. I was glad I'd worn shorts under my skirt today, as I scaled the chain link fence surrounding the area. Jumping down from the top, I looked around and headed for the structure of iron beams and siding. I had just entered the incomplete building when I felt one of the pressures approach.

"Ah, Sora, to what do I owe this unexpected pleasure?" Shinji stepped out of the shadows with his creepy grin in place. I crossed my arms and surveyed the area, picking out the location of at least four others that had yet to make their appearance.

"I was hoping you could help me out with a problem of mine."

"Oh?" He leaned in closer, invading my space much like he had yesterday. "Do tell. What kind of problem would bring you to me?" I saw no point in beating around the bush, so I quickly cut to the chase of the matter.

"My reiatsu has been sealed. I figured you or one of your friends might know some way to undo the seal." I caught movement out of the corner of my eyes, but didn't call attention to it. "I asked Urahara about it, but he was uncooperative and told me to wait. I'm not really the patient type."

"I see. I'm not really familiar with seals and the like. For that, you'll want Hachigen's opinion." I could feel one of the others move towards us, out of the shadows. He was a large, round man with a kind smile.

"Hello there, I am Ushoda Hachigen. Let's take a look at that seal, yes?" I nodded, unsure of what exactly checking my seal would entail. "No need to be nervous. It's a painless process. Now, just hold still for a moment." He reached out a large hand and placed it on my head. I could feel his energy searching through my own, as if it were sifting through files. It was a strange, ticklish feeling. I stiffened when he did. Apparently, he had found my seal, and from the look on his face, it wasn't good news. "I see."

"What? Is there something wrong? You can remove it, right?" He retracted his hand and shook his head sadly, an apologetic look glimmering in his eyes, sincerely disappointed that he would be unable to assist me.

"I'm very sorry, Miss. The seal is unlike any I have ever come across before. It's a blood seal and can only be removed by the one who placed it there. If Urahara Kisuke is the one who put it in place, only he can remove it."

"FUCK!" I growled, walking a few steps away in frustration. This had been my ace in the hole, my chance at gaining the strength I needed to defend myself and those I cared about from the dangers of Hollows and invading arrancars. I hated feeling weak and helpless. It just wasn't in my nature. "What the hell am I supposed to do now?! I can't just sit back and let that stupid Strawberry handle everything. That idiot can't even take care of himself! No way am I trusting him to protect Hime!" I was pacing back and forth now in an agitated state. This was not panning out the way I had hoped it would.

"Ha! I assume you're talking about Kurosaki Ichigo?" Shinji was chuckling to himself, the sound bringing me closer to my snapping point. "I wasn't aware you two knew each other. It's obvious there's no love lost between you though with the way you refer to him." Apparently, Hachigen was better at sensing my mood, as he laid a hand on the shorter Vizard's shoulder in warning.

"I wish we could be of assistance to you, Miss -"

"Sora. Yukimura Sora."

"Ah….any relation to Yukimura Suzuha?" He questioned curiously.

"Yeah, she was my mom." I stopped pacing and looked up at him. "Did you know her well? I don't know anything about her time in Soul Society. I just learned recently that she wasn't even human."

"That must have been difficult news for you." He murmured sympathetically. I shrugged. "Yes, I knew her. She was a very intelligent woman. She graduated top of her class from the academy and was immediately chosen to join Squad 12, which is mostly comprised of scientific minds. Urahara Kisuke was her captain for a time before he was expelled from Soul Society, along with us Vizards."

"Well that's a juicy tidbit he failed to mention during our discussion." I muttered bitterly. "Will you tell me your story? Your condition as Vizards is so similar to that of the arrancars. It can't be coincidence."

"Indeed, it was not. Just as Aizen created the arrancars, he is also responsible for making us what we are today. We were once respected captains and lieutenants of the Gotei 13. His foul experiments brought us down, one by one. When we fell, we underwent a transformation called hollowfication. We gained Hollow masks and powers, but we were unstable, lashing out at those sent to put us down. Luckily, Captain Urahara was able to save us, bringing us back from the edge of our madness and smuggling us into the Living World, where we were able to train ourselves to restrain our darker halves. Urahara was framed by Aizen and took the fall for the illegal experimentations, leading to his dismissal from the Gotei 13 and his exile from Soul Society."

"When did all of this happen?"

"About 101 years ago."

"Damn, you age well." I joked half-heartedly. "It seems Aizen has been plotting for quite some time then. A dangerous man." Sighing, I scratched the back of my head. "Which makes it even more frustrating that I've been left practically defenseless in the midst of this war."

"I agree. It does not make sense that Urahara would refuse to remove the seal during such dire times. He is not one to make decisions lightly, so he must have his reasons for making you wait." I liked Hachigen, but I did not want to hear more shit about Urahara's reasoning for not removing my seal. I could feel my suppressed reiatsu flaring with my temper. The Vizards couldn't help me. Urahara Kisuke refused to help me. It was time to go.

"Thanks for your time, Hachigen." I bowed to him and then nodded to the other visible Vizard. "Shinji." Gazing around at the silhouettes in the shadows, I gave them a nod of acknowledgement. "Mysterious, shy Vizards." I heard a loud cackle emanate from one of the smaller shadow before Shinji threw something at it.

"Shut your mouth, Hiyori!" Rolling my eyes at their antics, I took my leave, sorely disappointed with how my venture for help had ended.

Back at home, I had moved into autopilot mode, preparing dinner, watching tv, and getting ready for bed. It wasn't until Grimmie and I had settled into my bed for the night that the full brunt of my predicament struck me. Everyone I had approached for help either couldn't or wouldn't offer their assistance in the matter. Thinking back on my last conversation with Urahara, I cursed him again. _He has the gall to give me orders after leaving me without a way to defend myself. He knows I've had contact with Hollows and arrancar, yet he still refuses to return what is rightfully mine!_ Clenching my fists, I closed my eyes and counted to ten. As I was attempting to calm myself, I heard a voice hissing in the back of my mind. _**Claim your power. Claim your inheritance.**_ Well, that was new and sufficiently weird. Opening my eyes and sitting up, I looked over to find Grimmie sleeping soundly, sprawled out on his back as usual. The room was empty, aside from us. _Well, it's obviously in my head. It's official. I'm going insane. The lack of sleep and the stress are catching up to me._ _ **Don't be absurd. You're not going mad.**_ _Oh yeah? Well, I'm hearing a voice in my head that isn't my own. How else do I explain that quaint phenomenon?_ I slid out of bed and made my way to the kitchen for some water. _Hell, I'll play along. Do you have a name, creepy voice in my head?_ _ **How rude. My name is Toraneko.**_ _Right. What do you want, Toraneko?_ I'd given up on sleep for the moment and made my way to the couch, where I flopped down and closed my eyes. _**Well, I was trying to help, but you're being rude and I'm thinking maybe I should just keep this information to myself.**_ I could vaguely sense the voice huffing in annoyance, which made me smile. Though the voice sounded deep and had a gravelly tone to it, it was distinctively female. She was well-named, as I could just imagine a striped tail twitching back and forth at me in my mind's eye. _I'm sorry, Tora. Please tell me?_ I got no response though. I'd irritated the voice and it had retreated. Great, another strike to add to my list. The creepy voice had wanted to help and I'd pissed her off. Hopefully, she'd come back at some point. Hauling myself up from my seat, I made my way back to the bedroom and slipped under the covers, reluctantly letting sleep pull me under, back into another round of nightmare roulette.

 ***Grimmjow's POV***

Ulquiorra and Yammy had returned from their scouting mission to gauge the power of a certain Soul Reaper occupying Karakura. We'd been called together to go over what they'd learned and encountered and were currently watching the footage they'd captured of their fight with the enhanced humans, Urahara Kisuke, Shihoin Yoruichi, and the one called Kurosaki Ichigo. _I've heard that name before, but where?_ Racking my brain, it dawned on me. _Of course! It's the boy Kitten beat in her little fist fight the day we met._ Focusing on the images of the Soul Reaper advancing on my fellow arrancar, I frowned. _She obviously didn't go up against this form. He's a threat._ This was ridiculous. Why hadn't that asshole, Ulquiorra finished the weakling. He was going on about orders or some shit when I decided to cut in.

"That's weak. I would have killed them all. I would have made damn sure to kill him." One of my fraccion stood behind me and voiced his agreement. I nodded before turning to the pathetic form of Yammy. "And look at you, Yammy. You got your ass handed to you. Ya look like shit. I think the real reason you didn't kill him was because you were too weak to do it. Admit it, he got the best of you."

"Tch, the kid had nothing to do with my injuries. It was the others."

"Did you not hear me, you deaf buffoon? I said I'd kill all of them!"

"Why you -"

"That's enough." Ulquiorra cut in. "We are not concerned with that human trash known as Kurosaki Ichigo. Aizen-sama was merely interested in his rate of growth. He is not threat to us in his current state."

"Yeah? Well what if he gets stronger?"

"Then I'd destroy him. Simple as that."

"Hmph."

"No comment?" The smug bastard turned away and continued to talk with Aizen, while I tuned them out. I was formulating a plan. I'd show that asshole. I'd show them all not to underestimate Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez. Before I set my plan into motion though, I needed to make a visit to gather a little intel. Smirking, I stood and headed towards the desert of Hueco Mundo.

I created a garganta and stepped through, finding myself in an alley between two buildings. This was my first time visiting Kitten's world. It was different. It was dark outside, but unlike Hueco Mundo, there was noise instead of dead silence. Jumping to a nearby rooftop, I scouted out my surroundings. I wasn't here for sightseeing, I had come for _her_. We'd encountered each other enough that I'd memorized her scent and the pattern of her spiritual pressure. I smelled the air and grinned. She was near. I tracked her scent to a residential area and pinpointed her spiritual pressure to the first floor. Testing one of the windows, I found it unlocked and let myself in. _What kind of idiot leaves herself vulnerable like that? What if I were a predator?_ I paused at that and shook my head with a grin. _The fuck am I thinking? I AM a predator._ Stalking around her living quarters, I found it to be mostly empty. The only living occupants seemed to be the woman and the furball. I made my way down the hall and peered into the bedroom at the end of it. The cat had taken up a good portion of the mattress, while Kitten was curled up on the edge, her back facing away from where I stood at the doorway. As I stepped inside the room, my namesake stirred and blinked up at me with curious blue eyes, still heavy with sleep. I moved a finger to my lips as I continued to approach. Deeming me a minor nuisance, the feline laid his head back down and went back to sleep.

"Not a very good guard cat, are you?" Turning my attention back to the woman, I noticed she was sleeping fitfully, mumbling in her sleep as she tossed and turned. I reached out and grabbed her by the arm. "Oi, woman, wake up!" She startled awake, eyes bright with terror until they locked onto mine. She stared at me for a moment before launching herself at me, catching me by surprise as I stumbled backwards. "The hell do you think you're doing?! Get off!" I tried to pry her off of me, but her arms were locked around my neck, her face buried against my chest. I could feel something warm and wet trailing down my chest. _Is she fucking crying?! I didn't come here to deal with a hysterical, crying woman! The fuck is this shit?!_

"Aoi…..Aoi….sorry. Aoi…..my fault. Sorry…." I could vaguely make out what she was mumbling. I stilled at the name. Like the woman clinging to me, it was familiar. The name echoed in my mind, bouncing off of empty spaces where a memory should be. Irritated, I finally managed to extricate myself, holding the emotional woman away from me by her shoulders.

"Quit your crying, woman. I thought you were different than other females. I'm disappointed." At this, she seemed to snap out of whatever nightmarish haze she'd been wrapped up in. Her shaking subsided and her tears dried up as she properly looked up at me.

"Grimmjow. It's you." She seemed confused by my presence, pulling out of my hold as she swiped at her face, ridding herself of the evidence of her moment of weakness. "I didn't expect to see you here. Did you need something?" The crying woman from just moments ago was gone, replaced by the familiar, confident female I'd become acquainted with over the past few days. The only sign of her crying fit was a slight red tint around her nose and the puffiness under her eyes.

"Yeah, I did. Intel on that kid you fought, Kurosaki Ichigo." At the mention of his name, her eyes went hard and cold.

"What do you need to know? I assume you're planning another attack."

"You'd assume correctly. Not gonna go ratting me out are you?"

"Don't be ridiculous. I owe nothing to the Soul Reapers. I only have one condition for giving you information."

"Yeah? Let's hear it then." I followed her out of the bedroom as she headed for the kitchen. She grabbed a glass, filling it with water and taking a long drink before offering it to me. Waving it away, I waited for her reply.

"You leave my friends, Orihime and Tatsuki, out of the fighting. One of your arrancar buddies messed Hime up really bad last time, Tatsuki as well. Like I said, I don't owe the Soul Reapers anything, but I won't stand by and let my friends get caught in the crossfire." Thinking back to the footage we watched, I quickly discerned who she was talking about.

"That's your only condition?" She nodded her confirmation. "Done. Now, do we have a deal, Kitten?" I held out my hand, which she quickly grasped in hers, looking up at me with a feral smile. Her hand was so small in mine, but her grip was firm. The look in her eye matched the wild recklessness of her smile.

"We have a deal, Mr. Jaegerjaquez. Now, where shall I start?"

 **So there you have it, another little tidbit into Sora's past along with some interesting new developments for her. Super excited about getting started on Chapter 6! I've been waiting to write that chapter since the beginning! I'll try to have the next chapter out by Friday at the latest. Thanks to all my followers/reviewers, new and old. Thanks for being awesome!**

 **XD-kaycee**

 **jaxon12**

 **MlikeMuffin**

 **MarishkaTheUnderdog**

 **LunaBlackMoon**

 **Crossdresser123**

 **zZhell-butterflyZz**


	6. The Hunt

**Hello amazing readers! Sorry this is late! It's not as long as I thought it was going to be, but it's definitely packed with some crazy awesome developments! I wrote this nonstop from midnight to about 6:00 in the morning. I apologize for any errors there might be. I'm going to go back over it sometime tomorrow and fix any mistakes I notice, but I wanted to get this out for you guys as soon as possible! So, enjoy! *Disclaimer* As always, I own zero Bleach characters, only my OC Sora. :)**

 ***Sora's POV***

I spent the rest of the night answering Grimmjow's questions. He wanted to know how many Soul Reapers were lurking around, if I knew their strengths and weaknesses, but mostly he wanted intel on one Kurosaki Ichigo. I was more than happy to disclose everything I knew about my longtime nemesis.

"He's short-tempered but loyal, if you want any kind of fight out of him you have to set him off. The best way to do that is to go after Rukia. They've been practically joined at the hip since she first came to Karakura. Still haven't quite deciphered what kind of relationship they have, but he's suuuuper protective of her." I leaned back against the couch and studied my guest as he lounged against the opposite wall, his arms crossed. He met my gaze, letting me know I had his full attention. "I've never fought him as a Soul Reaper. I can't tell you what kind of tricks he has up his sleeves, but he's reckless. He'll make stupid mistakes, so if you keep your cool you shouldn't have a problem." I could only contain my laughter for a second before laughing at my joke. "Yeah right! You have zero chill power. I gotta say, I'm a little disappointed I won't be able to watch. It'd be interesting to see two reckless idiots go at each other."

"Watch it, Kitten. Don't test me." He narrowed his eyes at me as he slowly made his way across the room. "I find you amusing, but don't think for a second that means I won't tear you to pieces once I grow tired of your antics."

"You really know how to charm a lady, Grimmjow." I winked up at him as I twirled a strand of hair around my finger. "Whatever did I do to deserve being courted by such a gentleman? Be still my heart!" My dramatic performance was not appreciated by the two males in the room, both of them rolling their eyes at me. "You guys are lame. No bacon for you! Bye!" Stretching, I pulled myself up from my spot on the couch and headed for the kitchen with the intention of calming the beast currently roaring in the pit of my stomach. Grimmjow had found his own way in, so he could see himself out.

Grimmie knew what came next, so he quickly cuddled his way back into my good graces, rubbing against my legs and emitting cute little mewls from time to time. _Devious little bastard. He only wants my food._ I quickly got to work, cracking a few eggs into one pan and spacing out my slices of deliciousness in another. The apartment was soon filled with the smell and sound of sizzling bacon.

"You almost done, woman?" His voice startled me, distracting me from the grease popping out of the bacon pan, landing on my arm.

"Sonofabitch!" I hissed, jumping away and clutching my lightly burned arm. I whirled around and stared at the amused arrancar sitting at my breakfast bar, smug smirk perfectly in place. "Grimmjow! What are you still doing here? I thought you would have gone back to Hueco Mundo by now, not creeping up on me in the sanctity of my own kitchen!"

"Well, I didn't. You're obviously making food. I want some."

"Wha- NO! I'm not sharing my food with you. The deal we made was for the sharing of information, not my bacon!" I waved my bacon spatula at him emphatically to drive my point home. "Besides, how is it even possible for you to eat with that giant hole in your stomach? How does that even work?"

"Tch." He was giving me that judgy look, one eyebrow raised in disbelief at my apparent stupidity. "You think too much. I don't question it. Who the fuck cares where my food goes? It's food."

"It's scientifically, no, biologically impossible! Where does the food even go?!" I leaned over and boldly stuck my hand through his hollow hole. "Seriously, you've never wondered about this?" He stiffened and pushed me away.

"Quit that, ya weirdo."

"Yeah, I'M the weird one." This earned me another glare.

"Your bacon is burning, idiot."

"Shit! Not my bacon!" Turning my attention back to the food, I flipped the slightly burned pieces over before deeming them done and plating the bacon and eggs. "Careful, it's hot." I warned as I slid a couple crumbled pieces into Grimmie's bowl alongside his usual can of tuna I had gotten at the store. He was a picky cat and had refused to eat the actual cat food I'd also bought him. As I made my way over to the breakfast bar to start on my own food, I froze. "You didn't."

"The fuck are you talking about?"

"You asshole! You ate my bacon! Spit it out!" He had eaten all but one, half-burned nibble of bacon on the plate. He looked damn proud of himself too. My unwanted houseguest had outstayed his welcome. Grabbing up a knife from the block, I advanced towards the food-stealing target.

"And what do you plan on doing with that? You don't seriously think you can hurt me with something like that do you?" Leaning back on his barstool, he placed a hand on his sword and patted it almost affectionately. "Come at me and I'll break your little toothpick, Kitten." His mocking tone and smug smirk did nothing to deter me. His misdeeds needed to be punished. _There will be blood._ I grinned at him before making my move. I faked a lunge forward before ducking down, avoiding the hand he'd extended to stop me, and managed to nick his cheek before he jumped back, landing in a crouched position on the back of the couch. His face was now a mixture of rage and surprise, an interesting combination I'd yet to see from him. There was a small cut on his left cheek.

"What was that you were saying, Grimmjow?" I waved the knife playfully at him. I knew it wasn't wise to tease the short-tempered arrancar, but it was quickly becoming one of my favorite pastimes. The only response I got was the _clink_ of his sword as he pulled it out of its sheath. "Fuck." Tossing the knife in the sink, I beat a hasty retreat to my bedroom. I could hear his slow, steady footsteps in the hall. Thinking on my feet, I threw the window open before diving underneath the bed. Calming myself so as to steady my breathing, I waited for my pursuer.

"C'mere, Kitten." He called as he entered the room. I could see the tops of his boots as he passed my hiding spot and moved towards the open window. "Hn, you're smarter than I gave you credit for." I heard him close the window and my heart started beating rapidly once again. "Too bad for you I can smell you." Before I could think too hard about how creepy that sounded, I felt his hand grip my ankle as he pulled me out from under the bed. I let out something between a scream and a giggle. I was terrified that this man might kill me, but at the same time I'd never felt so alive. I settled on the latter and was full on laughing by the time my head cleared the end of the bed.

"You got me! Remind me never to play Hide-and-Seek with you, ya cheater." I crossed my arms behind my head and looked up at the completely confused look my captor was giving me. His sword, Pantera if I remembered correctly, was drawn and hanging causally by his side. He released his grip on my ankle as he continued to stare down at me, as if trying to figure out a difficult puzzle. After a minute or two of silence, he sighed and sheathed Pantera.

"Reckless woman." He carded his fingers through his hair and looked out the window at the brightening sky. The sun had risen quite some time ago and the sky was clear, not a cloud to be seen. Looking at the sky, back in Hueco Mundo and here and now, seemed to have a calming effect on Grimmjow. "You're gonna get yourself killed one of these days."

"But not today." Turning his attention back to me, he shook his head and chuckled, remembering those words from the first fight we'd had.

"No, not today." He turned and left the room, pausing for a second to yell back at me. "You coming? I'm still hungry. Make some more bacon."

"BAKA GRIMMJOW! KEEP YOUR HANDS OFF MY BACON!"

 ***Grimmjow's POV***

"Stupid woman." I muttered as I prowled through the halls of Las Noches. _Can't believe she managed to catch me off guard._ Rubbing absently at the small scratch on my cheek, I grinned, remembering that familiar glint of crazy recklessness in her eyes before she'd attacked. _She'd make a damn good arrancar. None of that Soul Reaper shit. They'd only hold her back._ Her reaction after I'd drawn Pantera had been a beautiful frozen picture of panic. I'd expected that. What I hadn't expected was what had happened when I finally caught her. Killing her would have been so easy, she knew that just as well as I did. _So why did she laugh? Why did she smile at me when I was ready to tear her apart?_ "Whatever. I've got better things to do than thinking about that ridiculous woman." I'd instructed my fraccions to meet me in Karakura. It would be more discreet to move one at a time instead of as a group. Creating a garganta for myself, I grinned. "I'm coming for you, Kurosaki Ichigo."

My fraccions found me shortly after I arrived. We stood on a roof as I gave them the rundown of what Kitten had told me about their numbers. There were reinforcements now, which slightly complicated the plan. There were only six of us and seven of them, not including those human anomalies with above average reiatsu or the new idiot who had just recently been added to my faction. I didn't even know what his name was yet, but he'd been snooping when I informed the others about the covert mission and had insisted on joining. It was either kill him or let him join, and since killing him would have drawn attention - it was an obvious choice.

"I've give you your instructions. Aside from those two human females you saw from the meeting and my informant, everyone else is fair game. If they have even a little bit of reiatsu, kill them. Kill every last one of them." They dispersed quickly, seeking out their targets. I rushed forward, eagerly looking for my prey. It didn't take long. "That fool!" D. Roy had just been eliminated by the small, female shinigami. _After all we've been through, he gets put down by a runt like HER?_ Landing on a nearby roof, I surveyed the damage along with the two shinigamis standing idly by the site of my old friend's demise. "Nice to see you stuck around after killing my subordinate. It makes killing you both so much easier!" The woman and my prey looked up at me in shock. _By the time I'm done with them, they will know to fear me._ I grinned down at them. "I'm Grimmjow, the Sexta Espada. Remember my name."

"Grimmjow?" The orange-haired kid spoke up, looking confused.

"Yeah, that's what I said."

"Hn." Kurosaki grabbed up a discarded bag from nearby and started rummaging through it, searching for something. What he pulled out was a small, black collar with what looked like a silver skull ornament hanging from it. "Is this yours?"

"What? Why would you think that piece of shit is mine?" I caught the collar as he threw it up at me.

"Check the tag. That's your name, isn't it?" Sure enough, my name was etched into the little, silver skull. _Why the fuck - that infernal woman. This is for the damn cat!_

"I swear I won't hesitate in killing her next time. She's more trouble than she's worth." I grumbled, tucking the collar away in my pocket.

"How do you know Yukimura Sora?" It took me a moment to figure out who he was talking about. _He's talking about Kitten._ "That collar was in a bag of groceries that belonged to Yukimura. Grimmjow isn't a very common name. So tell me, how do you know each other?"

"None of your damn business, ya fucking brat! You're really starting to piss me off." Recalling what she had told me, I figured the runt was the Rukia he was so protective of. He obviously wasn't taking me seriously, thinking he can ask me questions and shit. _Let's light that fire of his and get a little revenge for good ole' D. Roy._ Jumping off the roof, I moved fast and thrust my hand through the little shinigami's stomach. "Huh, weak."

"RUKIA!" His screaming was annoying. Just as predicted, he rushed at me, blinded by his anger. I caught the blow against my wrist, disappointed with the amount of power behind it and pushed him back.

"You're boring me. I can't kill you until you've actually presented a challenge." Stretching, I watched him cowering near his fallen comrade. "Show me your bankai, Kurosaki. If you refuse to fight me seriously, I'll put a fucking hole in you like I did your friend." My little informant had proven to be quite useful so far. My grin grew wider as my opponent stood to face me.

"Bankai." Needless to say, I was underwhelmed.

"Seriously? That's all you got?" He came at me again with his altered zanpakuto, but again, it was pathetic. I caught it in my hand and threw him back. Seeing as he'd left himself wide open, I went in for a blow, surprised when he dodged to the side. Undaunted, I dodged his next attack and sent a punishing kick to his face, stomping him into the ground. "That's your bankai? All it does is make you a little faster. I was looking forward to this fight. How disappointing." The cloud of dust was starting to clear, and I could just make out the unsteady form of the substitute shinigami.

"GETSUGA TENSHOU!" There was no time to dodge as the large, black wave came rolling towards me. I held my arms up to brace myself for the impact. Hissing, I felt the dark energy cut into my forearms and across my chest. Letting my arms swing back down to my side, I looked down on my opponent.

"Ulquiorra failed to mention that particular trick in his report."

"Still disappointed, arrancar?" The cocky bastard was smirking up at me. I was beyond excited now. The laughter bubbled up and erupted from me. _I've never been so excited for a fight before_.

"Now I have a reason to kill you. It's my turn now!" Laying my hand on Pantera, I got ready to draw but was stopped by a familiar spiritual pressure. "Dammit. That asshole ruins all the fun." It wasn't until that moment that I realized how big of a fuck-up this mission had turned out to be. I couldn't feel the presence of even one of my fraccion. If Tousen caught me now, I'd have to go back to Hueco Mundo and explain this shitfest to Aizen personally. "Shit! I'm leaving." Turning away, I started heading towards Kitten's neighborhood.

"Where are you going? You can't just come and fucking attack us and then leave like that! FIGHT ME!" I glared over my shoulder at him.

"Be glad that I've been called away, Kurosaki. The continuation of this fight would have cost you your life. I hadn't even released Pantera yet. So remember my name, Jaegerjaquez Grimmjow. The next time you hear it, it will be the end for you. I'll kill you next time, Kurosaki Ichigo, no doubt about it." Not waiting for the idiot's reply, I sonidoed away. _Until next time._

 ***Sora's POV***

The rest of my day was blissfully quiet after Grimmjow left. I didn't have class, so I decided to relax at home with Grimmie. We spent a good part of the day taking cat naps and binge watching Stranger Things. After dinner, I was feeling restless from being inside all day. So I decided to take a walk to burn off some energy. Grimmie decided to stay put, in the midst of nap number eight. Calling a soft goodbye, I exited the apartment and made my way towards the park. It was a quiet night. Not many people were out. In fact, many were hurrying home for the night. The streetlights flickered on just as I reached my destination.

I couldn't explain it, but something felt wrong. It was as if my body were a string being pulled tighter and tighter, the tension building up within me. Reaching out, I tried to detect the spiritual pressures nearby. _Shit. It's begun_. I hadn't realized Grimmjow was so anxious to move forward with his mission. I could sense him and six other strange signatures not too far away.

"If I'd know the freaks were going to be out, I would have stayed in for the night." I muttered, turning to make my way home. I paused upon finding someone standing a few steps ahead of me. He was average height, about 5'10" with a muscular build and medium length red hair. The thing that caught my eye though was the hollow mask over his eyes and the hole in the right hand he was currently waving at me. "Arrancar, what do you want?"

"Well, boss said to eliminate anyone with reiatsu. You seem to have quite a bit. He'll be so proud once I take you out." He obviously wasn't the brightest crayon in the box.

"Look, I know you're here on Grimmjow's orders. I know about the mission, since I'm the one who fed him the information you guys are working off of. What's your name?"

"Me? I'm Arturo. My friends call me Artie though. You're not a friend, so call me Arturo." Before I could respond to his bizarre introduction, he was approaching me. "I'm aware of my espada's orders, but I think it would be a cleaner operation if we didn't leave any loose strings dangling behind, don't you?"

"No, not really." I started backing away, not liking where this conversation was leading. This guy was nowhere near Grimmjow's power level, but he was still stronger than me at the moment. "Ya know, I've met Grimmjow a few times now. He doesn't seem like the type who appreciates people who don't follow orders."

"That's because the rest of his fraccions are imbeciles. I am not his subordinate, but his equal. What I do now, I do for the both of us." For each step he took, I took two back. _Ew, he's giving me a really gross Grimmjow fan-boy vibe. I mean, what's not to admire? But this seems a little overboard and sufficiently creepy._ Seeing no other option, I turned and ran as fast as I could away from the homicidally insane arrancar. I made it a few feet before he suddenly appeared before me, grabbing me by my neck and tossing me away from him as if I were a rag doll.

"SHIT!" For the third time that week, I cursed as my head smacked against a tree. Definitely had a legitimate reason not to talk to those Save the Environment spokespeople now, since I kind of hate trees and all. "Stupid tree. Stupid arrancar. Stupid Grimmjow with his stupid, creepy subordinate."

"I'm sick of hearing you say his name. Filth like you does not deserve to utter a single syllable of it." Pulling myself away from the tree, I faced my attacker. I wasn't going to be able to run away, but I'd be damned if I didn't give him hell before he took me out.

"Tch, quit your whining you Grimmjow wannabe. You say you're equals, but you're not even in his league." Tapping my forehead, I grinned at him. "I might not have the abilities you do, but I can detect spiritual pressures. You're not even on the board compared to him. You're PATHETIC!" I'd pressed all the buttons I'd been aiming for. He threw himself at me again, sinking his fist into my stomach. I flew through the air and landed hard on my back, the wind thoroughly knocked out of me.

"HOW DARE YOU?!" His face was swimming in and out of my vision as he loomed over me. I couldn't see his eyes behind his mask, but the holes were glowing a deep red that matched the color of his hair. "I will make sure you die an agonizingly slow death. You will beg me for mercy by the time I am finished with you, filthy bitch!"

"Your trash talk could use some work, Artie." I felt only a tiny bit of regret as he picked me up by the front of my shirt and threw me into another tree. I hadn't even caught my breath yet when I felt something sharp rip through my right side. It took every ounce of willpower I had to keep from screaming. When I looked up, I saw that his appearance had changed. His hair was longer. Thick, curling horns now grew from the top of his mask, skeletal wings had sprouted from his back and he now had claws.

"I will crush you, but as I said, I will make your death slow and painful." He lifted a claw to my face and traced my cheek with it. "My zanpakuto is named Venero. In my released form, my claws produce a painful, debilitating poison. It burns through every part of the body, like fire in your veins. Once it has spread, you will start hallucinating. Your nightmares will become real and you will die in terror and inexplicable pain as your heart gives out."

"Oh, is that all?" The sharp object in my side twisted, making me gasp. Putting two and two together, I could see it was his claws digging into me. "Sounds like one hell of a trip."

"You just don't know when to shut up!" Arturo threw me to the ground and ground my face into the dirt with his foot. "Know your place, you insignificant worm." I struggled against him, but to no avail. He was stronger. I was just as weak now as I had been when Grimmjow had attacked me in Hueco Mundo. _I'm pathetic. I couldn't protect Orihime or Tatsuki when the arrancars attacked before. I had to resort to dealing information with the alleged enemy to protect their future. Now I'm going to die without being able to put up a fight because some asshat thinks he can fuck around with my life. I can't let it end this way. I don't want to die like this._

"Fuck you." I growled in frustration.

"Seems you haven't learned your lesson yet. We'll fix that." Dragging me up by my hair, he tossed me forward only to lash out at my back with his claws. This time, I screamed. The poison had started its fiery course through my body and I was starting to see those 'nightmares'. They were ripped straight from my dreams. Orihime's body was torn to shreds a few feet away. Aoi was screaming for me, but I couldn't see him at all. Tatsuki was bleeding out and staring at me with accusing eyes. "There. Isn't that better?"

"Go…..to hell, you sick….bastard." I gasped out. _This is what it's come to. The only resistance I can put up is a test of will. I will not give in. I will not give this fucker the satisfaction of hearing me beg for mercy. I will curse him with my last breath. I will smile at him as I leave this world, and that will be my victory._

" _ **That is a pitiful victory. Can it even be called that if you're not around to enjoy it? You disappoint me, Sora."**_ I knew that voice, the voice that was not my own yet echoed in my head.

" _Tora?"_

 _ **"Of course. I am pleased you remembered my name."**_

" _One never forgets their first mental breakdown."_

" _ **Still with the jokes, I see. I will let it pass this time, as it seem you are about to die."**_

" _Gee, thanks."_

" _ **Your snark is not appreciated. Now listen here. If you want to survive, you must claim your inheritance. Claim your power."**_

" _You know, I'd love to do that, but Urahara hasn't dealt with that pesky little seal yet."_

" _ **Do not get snide with me, child!"**_ Tora roared in my head and I flinched. It coincided with the fresh cut Arturo had just dealt to my chest. " **Pay attention. I will not repeat myself. Suzuha hid it away. She was scared of it. Scared of us. That is why she lied, why she locked away your reiatsu."**

" _What power? What are you talking about?"_ The mental conversation was helping to distract me from the torture my body was undergoing at the hands of the demented arrancar.

" **It's hidden nearby. Feel for it. It is calling for you. Free me, child."**

" _I don't understand. Tora, what am I searching for?"_ Silence. " _Damn it, Tora!"_ My body was screaming in pain. With no other recourse, I closed my eyes and felt for this presence Tora claimed was calling for me. Sure enough, I felt something. If I concentrated, I could pinpoint it coming from a lone sakura tree standing proudly a few feet away. Bracing myself for the pain, I started the slow crawl towards the tree. Arturo continued to mock me, but made no move to stop me, enjoying my occasional screeches of pain when the poison found a new part of my body to burn.

It felt like centuries had passed by the time I reached my destination. Grabbing at the trunk for support, I lifted myself to my feet and leaned against it. There was a small hole in the tree, just large enough to fit my hand through. I reached through, searching for something, anything that would help me out of this situation. I was starting to lose hope when my fingers fumbled against something cold and metal. Gripping it tightly, I pulled it out of the hole. Imagine my surprise when what I pulled from the tree was a sword. It had no sheath. My fingers were bleeding from where I had gripped it. All pain was the same at this point though. The blade was beautiful, red and gold. The colors seemed to move from moment to moment, pulsing like blood.

" **Good girl. Now call for me. Release me! Tell me what to do with this fool who dares lay a hand on you, who thinks he can take your life."**

"What's that you have there?" Arturo was approaching. He hadn't seen the zanpakuto yet, for that's what it was. My mother had hidden a zanpakuto in the tree, and it had a name. I turned to my tormentor and grinned, holding the blade up as high as I could.

"Hunt, Toraneko." The blade glowed painfully bright for a moment before breaking apart into a million pieces. Those pieces of red and gold swirled in the air, reassembling themselves into a large tigress, which stood between myself and Arturo.

" **I will feast tonight."** She growled before leaping at the horrified arrancar. It was over surprisingly quick. My body could no longer support me and I fell to my knees, watching as Tora consumed her prey. When she was done, she returned to my side. " **You did well. We are reunited. Once your powers are returned, we will be as one again. Now, climb onto my back. I will return you home. Drink this first though. It should counteract the poison."** I looked to where she had nodded her head towards, finding a pool of the dead arrancar's blood. The poison had already made me nauseous, the knowledge that my zanpakuto wanted me to drink my enemy's blood just sent it into overdrive. I vomited the remainder of my dinner until there was nothing left before weakly crawling to the blood. Cupping it in my hands, I tried to go to my happy place as it slid down my throat, still warm. I had to keep my hand pressed to my mouth for a moment to keep it down. " **That should do. Come. It's time to leave."** Nodding, I staggered towards her and collapsed onto her rough fur.

"What the fuck just happened?" The rest of my trip home was a blessed blur.

When I came to, I was laying in my entryway, Toraneko was nowhere to be found, and my blade had returned to its original form. _Thanks Tora._ There was no response, and I hadn't expected one. My body was still sore and weak from the loss of blood and the beating it took, but I was able to stand without too much pain. I only got a few steps before I fell back down.

"Maybe just a nap. Yeah. Naps are good."

"Mreow."

"Oh, hey. Sorry I'm late, Grimmie." He was pacing beside me, unhappy with the state I'd returned home in. "Tch. You should see the other guy. Nope, scratch that. It's gross. You don't want to see him." I was just about to try and stand again when my door opened, and in came the last person I had expected to see.

"The fuck happened to you, Kitten?!"

"I could ask you the same question, Grimmjow." I smiled tiredly up at the bleeding arrancar in my doorway. "Seems we both have some explaining to do. Now stop being an asshole and help me to the couch."

"So bossy." He grumbled, shutting the door behind him before scooping me up in his arms. The sudden movement was dizzying, as I held onto him for dear life, resting my head on his chest until my head stopped spinning. His heartbeat was steady and strong, and I found myself nodding off to the sound.

"Good….to be home."

 **Thanks for reading! I've got a bunch of great ideas for this story, so you can expect to be reading more chapters soon! I'll try to get this next one released by Friday next week :) Thanks to all those who have reviewed, favorited, followed and given me feedback on my writing!**

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	7. A Time to Heal

**Hey there! New chapter! Wooo! This is one of my favorites so far. It's kind of short, but super fluffy awesome :3 I hope you enjoy! *Disclaimer* I do not own any Bleach characters, only my OC Sora.**

 ***Grimmjow's POV***

Kitten passed out soon after I picked her up, mumbling something under her breath as her head fell against my chest. I wasn't surprised. From the looks of it, her injuries were extensive and a few were deep enough that they were still bleeding pretty heavily. I picked up the sword that had been laying next to her and leaned it against the wall, slightly curious about its presence. The floor was a mess. She'd probably bitch at me about the puddle of blood in her entryway, even if it is hers. Rolling my eyes, I settled the passed out woman on the couch. The cat was quick to join her, meowing in her face incessantly.

"Oi, cut that out. She's gonna be fine. I'll patch her up good as new. Wouldn't sit right with me if I let her die after she worked with me on the mission. Just gotta find her medical supplies." Thankfully, the little furball seemed to understand and shut up, choosing instead to curl up next to her head and occasionally lick her face. _Weird ass cat. Those two deserve each other._ I headed for the nearest closet, but found nothing in the way of bandages or medical tools, just a mountain of shoes and a variety of coats and jackets. _Who the fuck needs this many shoes? They all look the same to me anyway_. Shaking my head, I moved to the next closet and found something I could work with. I grabbed a couple of sheets and returned to the living room, ripping the first sheet into shreds. "Shit. I need something to disinfect her wounds with."

I decided to check the kitchen, figuring she might have alcohol or something. _Humans drink booze, right?_ There was nothing of use in her fridge or freezer. A look under the sink was definitely more productive. I'd finally found her medical supplies, but it was pretty pathetic. The only things inside were a small roll of gauze, a bottle of peroxide, a needle, a spool of pink thread, and a box of…. _Hello Kitty band-aids? What the hell?_ Lifting the latter, I unwrapped one and studied the tiny, cartoon cat decorating the bandage. _Why is this cat wearing clothes? The fuck is this shit?_ Tossing the band-aid back into the box, I grabbed the peroxide, the needle and thread, and went to check on the woman. She was still passed out, the right side of her hair sticking up from where the cat was still licking her. "Alright, Junior, move aside."

"Mreow."

"Don't give me that shit. You want her to live or not?" The feline huffed at me and moved from his spot, jumping up onto the back of the couch to observe and make sure I didn't further harm his human. "Stupid cat." Once he was out of the way, I started stripping Kitten of her clothes. When she was left in only her underwear, I started looking her over to take measure of what needed attention first. The worst was probably the hole in her right side, a wound that reminded me of when I'd put my own hand through the female shinigami earlier. "You idiot. What pile of shit did you land in this time? It's like you're fucking catnip for trouble." Shaking my head, I continued my examination. Most of the frontal injuries were shallow, aside from her side and a slightly deeper pattern of cuts that ran from her left shoulder to the middle of her chest. I wrapped my arm around her waist and pulled her forward to get a look at any possible injuries to her other side. She let out a groan of pain. Sure enough, her back was scored in claw marks. Whatever or whoever did this to her had certainly done a number on her.

I laid her back down and studied her face as she slept. It was drawn in pain, even in sleep, similar to how I'd found her the other night. _What happened to you, Kitten?_ I couldn't explain the complicated knot of emotion twisted up inside of me. There was no way I cared about this woman. She was a nuisance at best. We were always fighting. She drove me insane any time we shared the same space for more than five minutes. _So why should it bother me that she came so close to death?_ Clutching at my chest, I felt that same stirring of something trying to be remembered. _Seems like I can't rid myself of you just yet, Kitten._ Brushing her hair out of her face, I took a moment to appreciate her half-naked form. I'd always thought she was an attractive woman, but she was stunning. She may be small, but what she lacked in height, she made up for in curves. Her chest wasn't as huge as some of the women I knew back in Hueco Mundo, but Nell and Halibel were freaks of nature anyhow. Besides, Kitten's looked plenty enticing in her lacy black ensemble.

I shook my head to distract myself from that trail of thought. Grabbing up the peroxide, I poured the liquid onto a thicker shred of cloth and set about cleaning the blood away and disinfecting the deepest wounds first. Once it hit the hole in her side, she snapped awake quickly.

"MOTHERFUCKER! That HURTS!"

"Hold still, Kitten. I'm not done yet. Far from it." I continued to pour the liquid over her other cuts, watching as it fizzled against her skin. She cried out again, her hands grabbing at my jacket and holding it in a death grip. "Almost done. Turn around so I can get your back." Turning stiffly, she showed me her back. "Brace yourself." I ordered, guiding her hands to the arm of the couch, waiting until I saw her dig her nails into the fabric before continuing my administrations. Her back was the worst of it. The pain was too much for her and she ended up passing out halfway through.

I was actually glad she passed out again. It made what I had to do next a lot easier and hassle-free. I picked up a few pieces of shredded sheets before turning back to her slumped over form. Her bra was already in tatters, so I unsnapped it and tossed it away, keeping my eyes trained on her back as I looped the bandages over her injured shoulder and started wrapping them around her chest and back. This way she couldn't yell at me for being a fucking pervert when she eventually came to. I tied off the bandages right above her injured side. That particular injury would need stitches. After tending to the other shallower cuts, I finally picked up the needle and thread. I'd put it off until the end because it was not something I was looking forward to. _At least whatever did this didn't rip through the other side._ Growling in frustration, I rolled her over carefully, taking little bit of pride in my bandaging skills before turning my attention to the hole in her obliques.

"Here goes nothing." I quickly threaded the needle and tied off one side. Pressing one hand firmly against her shoulder to keep her still, I began the process of stitching the open wound closed. It went better than expected. She let out a few cries of pain, but for the most part stayed blissfully ignorant of the procedure. My fingers were slick with her blood by the time I pulled the needle through the last stitch. Leaning forward, I snapped the thread with my teeth and tossed the needle onto the coffee table. I took a moment to examine my handiwork. The pink thread was now stained red, but the stitching would hold. Pulling myself to my feet, I headed for her room, rummaging through her drawers until I found a large shirt for her to wear. I slipped it over her head and tried to make it as painless as possible, as I pulled her arms through. She merely grunted in discomfort. Satisfied that her bandages were holding steady and she wasn't going to bleed all over the rest of the couch, I made my way to the bathroom. Tossing my jacket and dropping my pants, I quickly figured out how to work her shower before stepping in to wash off the blood and sweat. My chest wound was still bleeding lightly, but it wasn't serious. It wouldn't need stitches. Reaching for the soap, I started to run it over my body when the scent hit me. I froze, my breathing coming faster and faster as flashes of color blurred before my eyes, a memory screaming in my head to be seen.

" _Aoi….always and forever."_ The words ghosted through my mind, accompanied by bright violet eyes and the scent of lilacs and vanilla. My entire body was trembling as I tried to regain my composure, pressing my now heated forehead against the cool tiled wall.

"Who the fuck are you to me, Kitten?"

 ***Sora's POV***

I woke up alone on the couch to the sound of the shower running. Every muscle in my body was throbbing to the beat of my heart. It felt like I'd lost a tag-team fight against Donkey Kong and his long lost brother, King Kong. Looking down at myself, I was surprised to find my injuries had been bandaged and the hole in my side was stitched closed. _That's right. Grimmjow's here. He must have patched me up._ I attempted to raise myself into a sitting position, hissing at my body's protest. Feeling something smack my cheek, I looked up to find Grimmie glaring at me. He reached out and smacked my cheek again, obviously displeased with my decision to get up.

"I'm fine. Quit fussing over me, or did you not want your midnight snack?" No more smacks came my way. Just as I started to haul myself to my feet, I heard the bathroom door open and turned. I could feel the heat rising in my face as my brain turned to mush at the sight before me. Grimmjow was standing in the doorway of the bathroom in nothing but a towel, water dripping down his chest, his hair hanging in wet strands against his face. "Um, hey….I was….you...what?"

He grinned at me as he rubbed the smaller towel in his hand against his head, sending his hair into disarray.

"See something you like, Kitten?" I remained speechless, cursing my inability to look away from his taunting, cerulean gaze. "What's the matter? Cat got your tongue?" He laughed loudly at his stupid joke before approaching. That sent me into action. I scrambled to my feet, wincing at the sudden movement as I put some distance between us, using the couch as a buffer zone.

"Um, thanks for fixing me up."

"Hn, couldn't just let you bleed out in the entryway." He shrugged off my words of thanks and continued to study me, a serious look on his face. "How you feeling? I didn't really get a chance to ask what exactly happened. You piss off Junior, here?" He smirked as he reached out a large hand to pat said cat on the head. Grimmie actually seemed happy, as if pleased that the man thought him capable of such destruction. _Idiots, the both of them._

"I'll, uh, explain everything, but let me get you some clothes to wear. I think I have a pair of sweatpants that might fit you." I made to go to my room, but he blocked the way, holding his arm out and filling the hallway with his large frame.

"Am I distracting you, Kitten?" He tilted his head towards me, his eyes burning hot like coals against my skin. I took a deep breath to steady myself after that heated look before meeting his stare dead-on.

"Yes, you are. Now move." My straightforward answer must have surprised him because there was no resistance when I pushed past him to reach my destination. I found the sweatpants, and praised kami for the airheaded generosity of Orihime. They were a gift from her, but were definitely not the right size for a shorty like me. I always ended up rolling up the bottoms and pulling the strings at the waist tight. Heading back through the hallway, I tossed them at Grimmjow's face. "Here. Go put these on and then I'll bandage that cut for you. Least I can do to thank you for taking care of me."

"What? Not going to yell at me for seeing you naked?" He was trying to push my buttons, leaning down so that his face was level with mine, mocking smirk present and all. He was getting his revenge for all the times I'd teased and made fun of him. His goal? Tto make me as uncomfortable as possible. It was working.

"Shut up, baka." I averted my eyes, hating the blush creeping across my face. "We will never speak of this again. Now go get changed so I can patch you up and be rid of you."

"Heh, no can do. I'm in hot water with the boss back in Hueco Mundo. I was thinking I'd crash here for a while until things cool down. Besides -" He reached out and wrapped a piece of my hair around his finger, giving it a little tug. "You're interesting." Blinking up at him in surprise, I felt my blush spread and deepen.

"Sh-shut up! Stupid Grimmjow!" I pushed him away and retreated to the kitchen. I'd definitely lost that battle. _I'm not used to Grimmjow acting flirty. What's gotten into him?_ The way he'd been looking at me when he'd said I was interesting sent shivers down my spine. It was as if he were staring into my soul, like he knew all of my secrets. There was a glint of recognition behind his blue eyes that I couldn't help but wonder about. What had happened between this morning and now? I shook away my chills and went about heating up the leftovers from dinner. I'd recently learned that Grimmjow had a massive appetite for someone who technically had no stomach. I'd made beef stew, and there was plenty left.

"You almost done? I'm still bleeding over here." I stuck my tongue out at the injured arrancar leaning over the breakfast bar. "Hn, real mature." His eyes wandered down to the two bowls of stew in my hands and lit up. "That food for me?"

"Yes. On the condition that you help me clean up all the blood in the entryway and on the couch later. I'd do it, since it's all mine, but -" I gestured at the plethora of bandages on me.

"Yeah, yeah. Just hand over the grub, I'm starving."

"I swear, you give a whole new meaning to having a black hole for a stomach." I muttered as I handed over his bowl of food. He proceeded to shove a spoonful in his mouth before waving his utensil at me with a straight.

"You ain't funny, Kitten."

"Grimmie thinks I am, don't you?" The cat had wandered in to consume the meat I'd placed in his dish. He didn't even glance up at me in response. "Traitor."

"Ha! He likes me more."

"In your dreams. He may not show it much, but he loves me."

"Heh, yeah he does. Couldn't get him to shut up at first when I carried you in. It was a pain getting him to move when I was cleaning your wounds."

"Really? That's so sweet!" His response was muttered into his food, but I thought I could make out 'Stupid sentimental woman.' I smiled as I scarfed down my own bowl of stew. It did wonders. I was nowhere near 100% yet, but having some food in me gave me a lot more energy. "Okay, let's fix you up, ne?" Grabbing him by the wrist, I guided him back to the couch and had him sit next to me. "Shit, guess I have to buy new sheets. Oh well."

"If you had a decent medical kit I wouldn't have had to use the sheets."

"No shit, Sherlock. I never expected to get mauled by arrancars or to be treating one no less!" Just when I thought we were getting along. _I guess this is normal for us._ I thought in amusement. It just wouldn't be the same if we weren't bitching at each other about something or other. The remainder of the first sheet wasn't enough, so I tore the second into shreds. I grabbed a clean piece that was thicker than the others and poured peroxide on it. "Hold still." Laying one hand on his bare shoulder, I began wiping away the blood and cleaning the large gash that extended across his chest. He made no noise of protest or pain. "It's not that deep. I assume you gave Kurosaki worse than what you got." I looked up as his chest rumbled with laughter.

"You shoulda seen his face. It was priceless. I gutted that Rukia chick to get him fired up. Took him awhile, but he finally got serious. He was holding back on me. I can't wait to fight him again."

"What stopped you from finishing him off?" His wound cleaned, I set to the task of bandaging him up. "Seems like he was no match for you." This time the rumble was caused by his growling.

"Fucking Tousen showed up and ruined everything." He was quiet for a moment. "The mission failed. The shinigamis wiped out my fraccions." I paused and looked up at him. He didn't seem sad so much as lost.

"I'm sorry, Grimmjow." For some reason, I really meant it too. I had secretly wanted him to succeed and punish those who had lied to me and failed to protect the people I cared most for in the world. "I'm also sorry that I killed one of them. To be fair though, he came at me first." This confession seemed to honestly surprise him. I could feel him tense under my fingers as I continued to wrap his chest.

"One of my fraccions attacked you?! I gave specific orders that you were not to be harmed. They should have known you were off limits the moment they smelled me on you." His voice was a quiet roar.

"Okay first, ew. That's really weird, Grimmjow. I don't know if I'll ever get used to this whole smelling me thing. Second, yes. It was some asshole named Arturo. He was super creepy and way too into you. Kept going on about you two being equals and shit. Said he was going to kill me so that there were no loose ends."

"That fucker! I knew I should have just killed him! Fuck discretion! Where is he? I'll rip him apart. No one defies my orders and lives!"

"Calm down. I handled it. He's already dead. Not much left of him, actually." I tied off the bandage, making sure it was nice and tight before looking up at him. He was seething in anger. One of his hands clamped itself around my wrist possessively, pulling me close.

"What do you mean you handled it? Explain." His eyes bored into mine and the reality of all the craziness of the night finally settled on me. It was real. I had almost died. Trying to control my shaking, I decided to start from the beginning.

"I - I've been hearing this voice in my head. At first, I thought I was just going crazy or the stress of everything was getting to me, but tonight I heard it again. It was the sword, Grimmjow. My….zanpakuto. It was calling for me. Her name is Toraneko. I would have died if not for her. She was hidden in a tree near where I was attacked. I was able to find her and release her just in time. Tora devoured him….Arturo, I mean. After she was done, she told me to drink his blood to counteract the poison from his claws. It was disgusting. I didn't want to, but - then she somehow carried me home and disappeared, going back into the zanpakuto I guess. It's all so insane and….and scary. I almost died tonight, Grimmjow. I almost died." I don't know what surprised me more, the fact that I had started crying in front of this surly, hot-headed arrancar for the second time in as many days or that he quickly tucked me against his chest in an attempt to comfort me.

"Quit your crying, woman. You're alive. The bastard is dead. You did good." His gruff praise brought more tears to my eyes. I wrapped my arms around him, careful of the bandages on his chest. He sighed heavily, resigned to his fate as he settled back into the couch. "Troublesome female. Just shut up and go to sleep." I didn't know what had spurred this rough protectiveness in my recent frenemy, but I couldn't say I disliked it. As I closed my eyes, I felt a sense of familiarity, a sense that I had been here before. Before falling into a dreamless sleep, I saw it briefly.

 _A little girl was crying, clutching at her bloodied knee from where the bully had pushed her down. She'd gotten back up and decked him in the face, waiting until he'd run off in tears before succumbing to her own. She wouldn't let anyone see her weakness. She was startled when a familiar, warm hand patted her mass of unruly white curls. Looking up, she saw the boy with matching blue hair and eyes grinning down at her._

" _Don't cry, Sora-chan. You did good. You're strong." Strong. That's what he called her. She was strong. Wiping away the remnants of her tears, she gave him a watery smile._

" _Thanks Aoi-kun."_

"Aoi-kun, thank you." I sleepily mumbled, hearing the heartbeat thrumming beneath me skip a beat as I sank into sweet unconsciousness.

 **So there it is! You can definitely look forward to some more fun interaction between Sora and Grimmjow in the chapters to come. I'll be sure to publish at least one more chapter by the end of this week. Thanks to all my wonderful readers who have reviewed, favorited, followed or just simply enjoyed my story.**

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 **Thanks for reading! I'll see you next chapter! :D**


	8. Sweet Dreams

**Hey there, everybody! Sorry for the long absence! I fell into the time-consuming black hole of gaming known as WoW and had some stressful adulting work stuff distracting me. Things have calmed down a bit, and I knew I had to return to writing this story. As always, I do not own Bleach, only my spitfire OC, Sora. Thanks to all of you who decided to stick around and support this fanfic. Enjoy!**

 ***Grimmjow's POV***

I woke up in an unfamiliar place with something warm and soft curled up against my chest. Looking down I saw Kitten's sleeping form. She sprawled across me, her head of fluffy white curls nuzzling against my side every few minutes. I fought off the smile and the annoying thought of her being cute, but lost that battle. Reaching out, I ran my fingers through her hair. It was as soft as it looked. Closing my eyes, I felt overwhelmed by her scent and the elusive memories it triggered in me. She smelled familiar and warm, a safe place. I wrapped an arm around her waist, careful of her stitches, and pulled her closer, burying my face in her curls. A low, steady rumble built itself up in my chest. It confused me for a moment before I realized what it was. _I'm fucking purring like a goddamn kitten_. _This is fucking embarrassing._ I refused to move away from her intoxicating scent though.

"The hell are you doing to me? Making me lose my edge, Kitten." I teased the sleeping woman, tracing random patterns against the exposed skin of her hip. The sound of a key turning had me freezing and tightening my hold on the vulnerable woman in my arms. I didn't sense a large amount of spiritual pressure and it was obviously someone Kitten knew if they had a key. I waited in silence as whoever it was opened the door and shuffled in. I could pinpoint the exact moment the intruder spotted the bloodstain in the entryway by the shocked gasp.

"Sora?!" A female voice called into the apartment. "Sora, answer me dammit!" The footsteps raced through the apartment. I could hear them bypass the living room for the bedroom before they returned and stopped at the edge of the couch. Raising my head I saw it was one of Kitten's friends. She had short black hair and a wild look in her eyes. "Sor-" She choked as she caught sight of us, her face flaming in embarrassment at the sight of our current position.

"Nnn…" I could feel the little troublemaker stirring at the racket her friend had caused. "Grimmjow, turn off the sun." She whined before burrowing her face back against my chest. I let out an amused grunt before nudging her gently.

"Oi, wake up, Kitten. We've got company and they can see your ass." That seemed to do the trick. She sat up too fast, letting out a sharp cry of pain at the pull on her stitches.

"Shit! Fuck! Oh, the pain!" I tried not to let her hear me quietly laughing at her, but was unsuccessful as she quickly smacked my chest and sent me a fierce glare.

"Um, sorry about dropping in unannounced. I didn't realize you were -" Her pain and anger forgotten, Kitten finally noticed her friend standing awkwardly at the end of the couch.

"Tatsuki! Wh-what are you doing here?" It was then that she seemed to also notice our state of undress and close proximity, and how her friend had portrayed the situation. "It - it's not what it looks like! Grimmjow helped me out last night after I got in some trouble, that's all! We didn't - It's not like that." Her face was now an attractive shade of red.

"Of course. Are you, uh, okay?" Deciding to have some fun, I sat up and wrapped an arm around Kitten's waist, pulling her flush against my chest.

"Of course she is. I took real good care of her all night." Leaning close, I pressed my lips against her ear, enjoying the shiver I got in response. "Isn't that right, Kitten?" I purred.

"Quit fucking around, Grimmjow." She growled, pushing me away and refusing to meet my gaze. She ignored my presence and returned her attention to the human girl. "Thanks for coming to check on me Tatsuki. I really appreciate it. Don't listen to this idiot, okay?" I glared at her for that comment and gave a vicious tug to a strand of her hair. "OW! Grow the fuck up, you asshole!" She shot me a glare of her own before extricating herself from me and stomping towards the kitchen. I smirked, feeling fairly certain I'd won that particular battle as I flopped back onto the couch and settled in for a nap.

 ***Sora's POV***

"That idiot. Fucking Grimmjow." I muttered as I threw together whatever was left in my fridge to make an everything omelette. My face was still burning red at the memory of his lips pressed to my ear and his hot breath fanning my face. I hadn't even heard exactly what he said because I was trying to get my heart rate under control. Knowing him, it was probably perverted. "No food for the hentai pervert." I growled smacking an egg a bit too harshly against the counter and splattering the surrounding area with yolky goo.

"Um, do you need some help, Sora?" Tatsuki's hesitant offer snapped me out of my angry trance. I'd forgotten she had followed me into the kitchen. Great friend I am.

"Sorry, Tatsuki. Yeah actually. That would be great." I handed over the carton of eggs and grabbed a nearby dish towel to clean up the mess I'd made. "He just gets under my skin with his asshole antics. Just when you think there's a heart under all that crap, he just proves time and time again that underneath all that fucking shit is another steaming pile of shit."

"Sounds to me like you like him." Tatsuki chuckled as she whisked together the eggs and some shredded cheese.

"The fuck are you on? I don't like Grimmjow. He's the world's biggest dick. I'm pretty sure he's allergic to basic human manners. He'd probably explode if he uttered a thank you."

"Hn, sounds like someone else I know." She gave me a knowing look as she cracked the rest of the eggs and grabbed the shredded cheese from the pile of miscellaneous ingredients. "I'm just saying that it's refreshing to see you thrown off your game. I've only known about him for all of ten minutes and I can already tell he's been a good influence on you."

"Tch, yeah right. If anything, he's a bad influence. I'm pretty sure I curse more since I've met him. Not to mention, I skipped school."

"Baka, don't play me as a fool. You didn't need any help with that." She laughed. It was nice hearing her laugh. We hadn't seen each other much lately because of our schedules and the new drama. I'd forgotten how at ease I felt in her presence, like I didn't have to carry the weight of the world on my shoulders anymore. I'd been a pretty shitty friend as of late. "Anyway, I meant that it's nice to see you relaxed and open. You usually put on the tough act around most people. It make you seem untouchable. With him, it seems like you kind of let your walls down, like you can really be yourself."

"Whatever. Forget about me and my stupid problems. How are you, Tatsu? I'm sorry I've been MIA as of late, but I'm all ears. How's practice going? Humiliate any muscle heads lately at the dojo?" She caught my eye with a knowing look as she whisked together the cheesy egg mixture.

"We've been friends a long time. I know when you're trying to manipulate a conversation around something you don't want to talk about." She smirked at the look of sheepish guilt on my face and returned to the task at hand. "Practice has been brutal with the tournament coming up. Hiroki tried to prove himself at the dojo and I wiped the floor with his stupid meathead face." She poured the mixture into the waiting pan and sifted through the other ingredients I'd compiled as prospective additions. "Ugh, really? Sometimes I think you might be as bad as Orihime. Pickles do not belong in an omelette, Sora." Tatsuki scolded me like a mother would a child, holding out the offending jar for me to see.

"I know that! I was just grabbing whatever was in there. And I am NOT as bad a cook as Hime. You would know that if you were subjected to her daily concoctions like I am." I shivered at the thought of one of her more disgusting recipes involving pickled squid, chocolate, and hot sauce. "Sometimes I lose the ability to taste for days at a time after eating her food. Besides, if I were such a bad cook then Grimmjow wouldn't bother whining at me to make him food all the time. So at least my food is considered worthy of human consumption!" Tatsuki stilled for a moment before sliding the now finished omelette onto a plate.

"Well, he's not really human now, is he?" I'd gotten mad at one of my friends for keeping me in the dark about what she was into, yet here I was doing the same thing to Tatsuki. But it seemed she'd figured out a good deal for herself, no thanks to me. That was to be expected, especially after her run-in with two arrancars. Her back was to me, but there was no tension in her shoulders. She wasn't upset, which made me feel even worse about keeping everything from her.

"I'm sorry, Tatsu. I'm a bitch. Here I am chewing Hime out for shutting me out and I did the same to you. I was just - I thought I was protecting you somehow by keeping you from it all."

"Good intentions. I'm not mad. Maybe a little disappointed that you couldn't trust me with it, but not mad." She glanced over her shoulder and smiled. "Now, are you going to continue to avoid the glaringly obvious fact that you're crushing on the non-human whatever he is snoring in your living room? Oh, and I'd really like to know why there's a huge bloodstain in the entryway." The last few days had been overwhelmingly stressful and painful, yet here I was with one of my best friends, making omelettes while a deadly arrancar in serious need of anger management lounging in my living room on a couch I'd almost died on a few hours ago. I lost it. I had to lean against the counter as I proceeded to laugh and cry hysterically. Tatsuki, being the saint that she is, turned off the stove and carefully pulled me into a much-needed hug.

"Everything is just so fucked up now, Tatsu." I hiccupped. "I just found out my mom wasn't who she said she was, that I'm not who I thought I was. Kami, I'm not even human. I have no idea what I am because some perverted old man thinks he knows everything and made some shitty deal with my mom to keep it secret. Both of my best friends got hurt and I couldn't protect them. I'm pretty sure Hime is in love with the stupid Strawberry, I almost died last night because of some psycho asshat, and I'm starting to feel things for the shitty arrancar with a bad attitude who eats all my bacon." Through my vent session, she listened and nodded, rubbing soothing circles into my back.

"And you've been dreaming about Aoi again, haven't you?"

"How did you -"

"I can always tell. The world could be coming to an end and you'd still sleep like a log, Sora. It's only the nightmares that keep you awake at night." She pulled away then and brushed my hair out of my tear streaked face. "I know you still blame yourself. You were doing really well for a while. Why did you stop seeing the doctor?"

"It hurt too much." I whispered, staring down at the floor. "I thought I was getting better too, but then just recently - the nightmares came back. It brought it all back, Tatsu. It's like I'm trapped in that moment. Each time I dream of that night, I feel like I'm drowning in that damn river I found him by. Drowning in that fucking torrential downpour that washed away his blood so that I didn't notice he was dead until -"

"Shh, it's okay." She pulled me back to her, settling my head against her chest. Tatsuki had grown taller than me back in grade school and I'd never caught up. She pet my hair, calming the whirling storm of emotions inside. "Have you talked to Rena? I know you talked about going to see her when you were still going to therapy." I let out a shaky laugh and shook my head.

"Rena hates me. She has since that night. I never got the guts to call her, let alone go visit her. I'm just not sure if I could handle - especially with all this weird shit going on at home." I felt her nod as she continued her soothing ministrations against my back. Maybe it was because I felt guilty for shutting her out for so long, or maybe I was just feeling vulnerable after my near-death experience, but I decided to share something I hadn't even voiced aloud to myself. "Tatsu, I feel like I'm going crazy. These past few days, the nightmares have gotten worse. And when I'm awake - sometimes when I'm around Grimmjow, I get this feeling like I've forgotten something. Something he says or his mannerisms, something just seems so familiar about him, like I've known him my whole life instead of barely a week. It scares me because somewhere deep down, I feel like they're the same person."

"Who?"

"Grimmjow...and Aoi."

 ***Grimmjow's POV***

My nap had been rudely interrupted when I heard that insufferable woman bitching about me in the kitchen. It's not like I'd saved her life or anything. Ungrateful bitch. I glared in the direction of the kitchen. _See If I save your ass again, Kitten._ I had every intention of leaving then and there until a white ball of fur flew at my face out of nowhere. I grabbed the fluffball by the neck before he reached his intended target and grinned at the struggling feline.

"You trying to take me out, Junior? You're gonna have to do better than that." I scoffed. The little runt stared at me with its big blue eyes wide in surprise. We stared each other down for another moment or two before he ceased his struggles and started to purr. "Huh, so that was a test then." I held him closer so I could look him in the eye, but well outside claw range. "I'm the alpha, little cat. Don't forget that." He blinked at me and continued to purr. Chuckling, I set him down on the back edge of the couch. Stretching, I went to get up but froze at the broken, strangled sound coming from the kitchen. My hand instinctively settled against the hilt of Pantera. Startled by the noise, the cat had toppled off the back of the couch and into my lap.

"Mew." He let out a pitiful noise as he scrambled back up the side of the couch, staring at the origin of the noise. Looking over the couch, I could see Kitten's friend holding her. Closing my eyes, I let my senses expand. I could smell her tears and hear her soft cries. Something inside my chest gave a painful twinge, like a blade twisting.

"Everything is just so fucked up now, Tatsu. I just found out my mom wasn't who she said she was, that I'm not who I thought I was. Kami, I'm not even human. I have no idea what I am because some perverted old man thinks he knows everything and made some shitty deal with my mom to keep it secret. Both of my best friends got hurt and I couldn't protect them. I'm pretty sure Hime is in love with the stupid Strawberry, I almost died last night because of some psycho asshat, and I'm starting to feel things for the shitty arrancar with a bad attitude who eats all my bacon." My eyes shot wide open at that last comment. _She feels things for me?_ I rubbed at the aching in my chest. _Of course she does. She hates me. That's it. That's the only possible explanation._ Tuning back in, I listened to her talking about seeing a doctor, her nightmares, and that name again...Aoi. When her friend said that name, I felt a sharp pain in my head. _Who is this person? Do I know them? Why-_ Kitten was talking again. I tried to ignore the pulsing pain and focus on what she was saying. What was she saying? "Tatsu, I feel like I'm going crazy. These past few days, the nightmares have gotten worse. And when I'm awake - sometimes when I'm around Grimmjow, I get this feeling like I've forgotten something. Something he says or his mannerisms, something just seems so familiar about him, like I've known him my whole life instead of barely a week. It scares me because somewhere deep down, I feel like they're the same person."

"Who?" The friend's question echoed my own thoughts, as the pain seemed to increase tenfold. It was getting harder to breathe, but every fiber of my being was fixated on Kitten and her response. I needed to know.

"Grimmjow...and Aoi." It was as if someone had suckerpunched me into a vat of acid. Gasping for breath, I clawed against the couch and let out a roar of pain before letting the darkness overtake me.

 ***Sora's POV***

Moments after I confided to Tatsuki my insane suspicions, a pained roar erupted from the living room. My heart leaped out of my chest as I jerked out of Tatsuki's embrace and dashed towards the source. By the time I reached him, he had passed out. Not before shredding my already destroyed couch though, I noted. Sitting on the edge of the couch by his side, I brushed his unruly blue locks off his forehead, which was burning up and already drenched with sweat.

"Shit. Tatsuki, can you get me a cold, wet rag please? He's running a fever."

"Yeah, of course." After she left the room, I leaned closer to the weakened arrancar and studied his features. He was in pain, that much was obvious. Even passed out, his breathing was labored and his features tense, as if he were battling some unforeseen foe.

"What's going on with you, Grimmjow?" I placed my hand against his fevered cheek. He sighed in response, his tension easing a bit. I smirked, brushing my thumb along the sharp outlines of his cheekbones. "Now why can't you be this agreeable when you're awake?"

"Here you go, Sora." My friend handed me the wet rag with a look of concern aimed at my unconscious patient. "Is he going to be okay? He seemed fine when I came in."

"I don't know." It was true, I didn't. Grimmjow was an arrancar and I knew very little about his species, but this fever didn't seem like a normal occurrence. "I'm not even sure arrancars can get sick, honestly."

"Do you think he heard us talking?" This thought was alarming. I'd forgotten just how different he was. He probably could hear everything we were saying in the kitchen with his animal like senses. But if he'd heard us talking then he knew about -

"He must have heard me talking about Aoi and my….suspicions. Maybe, just maybe, they hold some sway after all." I reached up and placed the cool cloth against his forehead, letting my fingers trail into those painfully familiar tresses. "It would be a hell of a stretch, but maybe."

"Just be careful." Tatsuki murmured, placing her hand on my shoulder. "Don't get your hopes up, and don't pressure him into being someone he's not. Even if they are one in the same, remember how much time has passed. He's a different person now, Sora. You can't expect too much of him."

"Nn, I know. It's just nice." I couldn't look away from him now that the thought had taken hold that this frustrating, beautiful man and my beloved childhood friend might be one in the same. "It's nice to hope. It's a nice feeling."

"I know." She perched on the coffee table and took to studying Grimmjow. "He's like the others, the ones who attacked me and Orihime." I shook myself from my dreamlike state and turned my attention back to my friend.

"Yes and no. He's an arrancar like them, yes. But he's - Grimmjow is...complicated." I sighed as I absently traced the outline of the hole in said arrancar's stomach. "I'm not sure how much you know about all this. I'll try to give you the Cliffsnotes version. Basically, there are other worlds aside from this one. Spirit worlds. Soul Society is where the shinigami and spirits who pass on from this world reside. The shinigami are also known as Soul Reapers. They help guide lost souls to Soul Society. On the other end of the spectrum, there's Hueco Mundo. It's home to monsters called Hollows, who come into our world and prey on lost souls or those with noticeable spiritual pressure. The Soul Reapers fight them. However, some dick named Aizen, also a Soul Reaper, decided to become kami. He did experiments on his fellow Soul Reapers, combining their essence with that of a Hollow, which created a species called Vizards. They proved to be uncontrollable and therefore unnecessary to his plans. So he tried again, this time using his power to infuse Hollows with the powers of a shinigami. That in turn created what are known as arrancars. Most of them serve Aizen, indebted to him."

"But not Grimmjow?" She queried. I grinned and shook my head.

"Not Grimmjow. He plays along for the most part, but he's not really committed to the cause. He's just a knucklehead who likes to fight, and he hates having to kneel to Aizen. The only authority he acknowledges is power. He's ambitious and strong. He's clever and has this aura about him like he was meant to rule, to be a king." I picked up his hand in mine and ran the pad of my thumb over the scars of his knuckles. "He's also incredibly stupid, stubborn, greedy, selfish, and never knows when to shut his fucking mouth. He'd sooner run you through with his sword than have an actual conversation with you. Don't get me started about his temper. Hot headed idiot." I murmured the last part quietly.

"But despite his flaws, you really like him, don't you?"

"Yeah, I guess so." I chuckled and gave her a bittersweet smile. "I guess you could say I have a type. I alway try to remember the good when I think about Aoi, but we had some nasty fights back in the day. Both too stubborn to admit when we were wrong. There's just something about them. There are these moment when he stops shitting around and becomes completely serious and says something I never would have expected. One minute we'll be fighting and the next he's telling me I'm interesting or offering to send me home, or teach me how to create a portal. He's the most confusing man I've ever met, and I just can't quit him."

"Hn, you've got it bad." She stood and passed a comforting hand over my curls. "Hang in there, Sora. I'm always here for you. Make sure to call me later, okay?"

"Mkay." I muttered, feeling suddenly drained from the afternoon's events. "Thanks, Tatsu. Love you."

"Love you too. And...I think maybe a trip to see Rena would be really helpful. You don't have to take my advice, but just think about it, okay? You need closure. Maybe she does too. You could even take Grimmjow with you, see what happens."

"You're right. I've been running for too long." I curled up sleepily against Grimmjow's chest, feeling my eyelids grow heavy as I struggled to stay awake. "Just so tired of running." I mumbled, as Tatsuki tossed a half torn up sheet over me.

"Rest up, Sora. Take care of each other." I was vaguely aware of the sound of the front door closing and the feeling of something small and fluffy cuddling between me and Grimmjow's chest. There was much to be discussed when my guest finally woke up, but for now I welcomed the warm dregs of a sleep untainted my nightmares.

 **So, there you have it! Some major shit happening in the next few chapters. Still plotting the exact course, but I'm excited about it! Thanks again to all of you who follow, favorite, review or just enjoy this story in general. You guys are awesome. I won't make any commitment to when the next chapter will pop up, but I'll try to be more consistent and not leave you hanging for so long lol**

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	9. Dark Temptations

**Hey guys! Are you surprised about this chapter already being published? I know I am. It was pretty smooth writing for the most part and I think this is one of my favorite chapters thus far. Anywho, I hope you like it! Disclaimer, yadda yadda, don't own Bleach. On to the next chapter! ^_^**

 ***Grimmjow's POV***

I woke up confused and angry, my natural reaction to the faint echos of the pain that had originally knocked me out. Opening my eyes, the first thing I saw was the intent stare of my namesake. I let out a warning growl telling him to piss off and he quickly scampered away towards the entryway, where I could hear the faint sounds of a brush scraping against the wood. Tossing aside the tattered sheet that had been covering me, I stood and headed towards my chosen target. She was on her hands and knees, scrubbing vigorously at the faded red stain on the floor. Every once in awhile, when she'd lean too far, she'd let out a sharp hiss of pain.

"What the fuck are you doing?" I barked at her. She glanced up at me before returning to the task before her, dipping her brush into the bucket of red water.

"I thought that was pretty obvious." She snarked. I was in no mood for that shit. Snatching the brush out of her hand with one hand, I grabbed the front of her shirt with the other and hauled her to her feet. "The fuck is your problem, Grimmjow?" I tossed the brush into the bucket and glared down at the angry female before me.

"What's my problem?!" I shoved her none too gently against the wall, relishing in her cry of pain. She tried to resist and push me away, but her attempt was pathetic. I locked her wrists in place above her head with one hand and let my other circle her throat, keeping eye contact with her to let her know there was no way she was going to escape. "YOU! You are my problem! Everything was fine until you came barging into Hueco Mundo. Ever since, things have been fucked up! I've lost my fraccions, I keep getting these headaches, like I'm trying to remember something, but that's impossible because Hollows - arrancars don't remember anything outside of Hueco Mundo. It only happens around you! You're making me WEAK! And if there is one thing I will not tolerate, it's weakness! I should just kill you now and be done with it!"

"THEN FUCKING DO IT! KILL ME!" She screamed back into my face, her face flushed with anger and eyes glistening with frustrated tears. "If I'm such an inconvenience then kill me." She leaned forward, increasing the pressure of my grip on her throat. This woman was insane. I hated her with every fiber of my being. Every instinct was telling me she was a threat to be disposed of, so that's what I would do. Tightening my grip, I slammed her head back into the wall, ignoring the feline menace trying to claw his way to my face with fierce yowls and furious hisses. I shook him off as I slowly increased the pressure on the woman's neck. Breathing was beginning to become difficult for her, her breaths coming in shallow gasps, eyes rolling back. "A….Aoi…" She gasped, her eyes closing with acceptance for her fate. There was that name again, and it had the same effect as always. With a howl of pain, I tossed her away from me, clutching at my chest.

"LOOK WHAT YOU'VE DONE!" I yelled at her shaking form a few feet away. "LOOK!" Her violet eyes slowly opened as she looked up at me, brought to my knees by this infernal woman. "You make me weak!" I hissed, trying to reach out to strangle the life out of those familiar eyes that made me feel safe. Hollows and arrancars should never feel safe. It's unheard of. Every moment of our lives is spent fighting to survive. So feeling safe is abnormal...weak. It's a death sentence because the moment we feel safe, we're vulnerable to attack, to a grisly demise as another's meal. Feeling safe meant weakness, and I would never subject myself to that. I was a survivor. I would crawl over as many bodies as it took until I reached the top, to insure my survival. With one look, all that hard work became nothing. She was silently crying. Tears rolling down her cheeks as she stared at me in a mixture of grief, fear, and hope.

"I'm sorry, Grimmjow." She croaked. Her apology sapped me of my fury. The tension and the pain dissipated and I was left feeling tired and ironically, hollow.

"Why are you apologizing to me, idiot?" I sighed and sat back, leaning my head back against the wall I'd had her pinned against moments before. I closed my eyes, shutting out the pained look on her face. "Don't look at me like that, Kitten." I could hear her moving but refused to look at her. She was moving closer. Eventually, I could feel her wrapping her arms around me and tucking herself against my chest. "Stupid woman. I just tried to kill you. The fuck is wrong with you, cuddling a man who hates you?" She flinched, but other than that did not move from my side. I opened my eyes and looked down at her. She wasn't looking at me, just clinging onto my chest.

"I understand why you'd want me dead. I can't imagine how painful it is for you. You're not supposed to remember anything outside of Hueco Mundo, yet I keep reminding you somehow. I'm sorry for that. It's painful for me too. And...if you really are him...then I'm sorry I couldn't protect you back then. You deserved better than me. I was selfish. I should have at least gone with you. I shouldn't have let you go alone. So you're right. It's my fault you're in pain." Growling in irritation, I pulled her fully into my lap and tilted her head back, forcing her to look at me.

"You're the most infuriating creature I've ever had the displeasure to meet. You're selfish, bossy, and annoying as hell. So why can't I bring myself to kill you? Why should your fucking tears matter to me?" I caught one of said tears on my finger and brushed it across her lips. "Why do I fucking care?" I muttered before leaning down and tasting the tears on her lips. It was salty and sweet. I bit her lower lip harshly, closing my eyes and savoring the taste of her tears and her blood. _She's so warm….smells good. Tastes good_. The empty feeling dissipated. I could feel the beginnings of a purr rumbling in my chest. Kitten's body had been tense after I bit her, but now she seemed relaxed, gazing up at me with those damn glazed eyes. Threading my fingers into the soft curls at the back of her head, I pulled her into me, crashing my lips down on hers in a rough kiss. I nipped at her bruised lower lip, causing her to gasp. Grinning to myself, I proceeded to devour my prey. She seemed frozen at first, but slowly her arms slid up from my waist to around my neck, returning the kiss with little nips of her own. Deep down, I could feel my inner beast growling at me. _**Mine.**_ It hissed. _**Ours**_ **.** Very few things were capable of waking the panther inside me, aside from fighting and killing. It seemed I'd found another trigger. Pulling back from her now swollen lips, I heard her let out a content sigh before nuzzling back against my chest.

"I like you Grimmjow. I know you hate me, but I like you." She peeked up at me from under those fine white lashes and gave me a small smile. I'd told her not too long ago that she was interesting, and she just kept proving that point. I laughed, entertained once again by her foolish acceptance of me after one of my more violent outbursts. Slipping an arm under her legs, I hoisted her up with me as I stood, heading for her bedroom.

"You're a stupid woman, Kitten. But I'm never bored when I'm around you, so I guess that's something. Maybe I don't hate you as much as I thought." I laid her on her side in the bed before climbing in beside her. Brushing my fingers against the hand-shaped bruise blossoming on her throat, I growled. I'd never apologize. It's not something I've ever done, and I didn't plan on starting anytime soon. But this feeling of….guilt, just didn't sit right with me. So I offered her the next best thing. "I won't hurt you again, Kitten." I murmured, pulling her closer with an arm around her waist. I buried my face in her hair again, like I had earlier in the day. It smelled different. She must have showered while I'd been passed out. The scent of lilac and vanilla was stronger, relaxing me. "No one will hurt you again..." The panther purred in agreement. " _ **Because you're mine.**_ "

 ***Sora's POV***

It had been three days since I'd almost died. Tora had remained silent during that time. I'd cleaned her up and laid her respectfully across the coffee table. I wished I could say that my other housemates had been as quiet. Ever since Grimmjow almost killed me, again, he's been more annoying than ever. I honestly don't think he was trying to irritate me, but his efforts to help out around the apartment had been one headache after another. I guess it was his way of apologizing. It seemed more like a punishment though. I'd woken up the first day to the smell of something burning and frantic yelling from the kitchen. Luckily, I was able to put out the blaze quickly with the fire extinguisher the landlord had installed under the sink. Unfortunately, Grimmjow seemed to think that burned food was still edible food and refused to let me be until I'd consumed the charred remains of what I assumed was the last of my bacon. The next disaster was a joint effort between him and Grimmie. Grimmjow had been in the middle of cleaning up the remainder of the bloodstain when the little feline had decided to go for a sneak attack. The arrancar saw it coming and had almost bashed poor Grimmie's brains out with the mop. Instead, his swing had gone wide and there was now a rather large hole in my wall. I'd also had to defuse a potential disaster when I'd got a call from Kurosaki, making a big fuss about my connections with the arrancars. He'd gone on about how he knew I was involved with the bastard who had hurt Rukia, yadda yadda yadda. I'd been able to bullshit my way out of that situation by pretending I had no idea Grimmjow was an arrancar, and that I'd just happened to bump into him on the street. The stupid Strawberry had fallen for my lie without too much of a fuss, telling me to be careful and for me to let him know if I saw Grimmjow again. I'd lied through my teeth, promising he'd be the first person I called if I saw the villain, all while watching said arrancar play wrestle with his namesake on the floor.

Day two, I'd reclaimed the kitchen and had cooked the pitiful remainder of what was left in my fridge, saving a measly portion of yellowtail for one of today's meals. I'd complained about the lack of food because of Grimmjow eating it all, and he'd insinuated that maybe it was me who was eating too much. I'd chucked a nearby pan at his fucking head, he dodged, and now I had two holes in my wall. After that incident, I'd stormed off to the bedroom and locked him out, refusing to speak to him for the remainder of the night.

Now it was day three and I was beginning to grow suspicious of the silence emanating from the rest of the apartment. I sighed as I made my way into the living room, glad to see no further harm had come to my apartment while I slept. Stretching, I noted that my injuries were mending quickly. Just a faint pinch of discomfort now across my back and side. Guess being non-human had its perks. Glancing around the living room, I noticed Grimmjow staring at me through half-lidded eyes from his reclined position on the couch.

"Woman, I'm bored. Let's go somewhere. I'm tired of sitting around your shitty apartment." I glared at him and pointed at the holes in the wall.

"You're the one making it shitty! Whose fault do you think this is?"

"Tch, quit your bitching." He sat up, an evil gleam in his eye as he smirked and pointed at the larger of the two holes. "Besides, that one's on you. Not my fault you can't aim for shit."

"Fuck you, asshole!"

"Maybe later." He gave me a look that can only be described as sinful, making me blush ten shades of red. Oh yeah, that was a thing now too. Since our impromptu makeout session after he'd tried to kill me, he'd been a LOT more flirtatious and forward with his sexual innuendos. He had sported a few hand-shaped marks on his face over that past few days after some particularly lewd comments and an attempt to grab my ass. _Fuck, what is wrong with me? He's tried to kill me on two separate occasions and here I am swooning at the thought of having dirty, passionate sex with him. Damn hormones. You're a fucking traitor, body! A damn piece of work._ Instead of responding verbally, I flipped him off and went in search of sustenance. "Ain't nothing in there. I already checked." My unwanted housemate called to me, still not moving from his spot on the couch.

"We still have the rest of that yellowtail. I remember saving some of it."

"Nope. I ate most of it and gave the rest to Junior. He wouldn't shut up about it."

"Great. A fucking arrancar and a cat are eating me out of house and home."

"Don't start that shit again." He growled at me. I sighed and ran a hand through my sleep tangled hair. Grimmjow was right about one thing. We needed to get out of this apartment. I was starting to go stir crazy. Tatsuki had brought my homework by the past couple days, since I'd decided to recuperate before going back to school. Besides, I couldn't really leave Grimmjow alone in my apartment. He'd probably burn the whole complex down if I left him by himself.

"If we're going out, then you can't go out looking like that."

"Like what?" He snapped, irritable as ever. Walking back into the living room, I tapped my cheek, coinciding with his own, which sported a partial Hollow mask.

"You're a bit too conspicuous. No worries though. I know a guy who owes me a favor." I wandered over to the closet and grabbed an oversized black hoodie, tossing it in Grimmjow's direction before grabbing a black leather jacket for myself, slipping it on over my purple skater dress and black leggings. Rummaging through the bottom of the closet, I found a pair of black ballet style flats and slipped them on.

"Where're we going?" Grimmjow grumbled. He was being more bratty than usual, which I chalked up to him being hungry. I shut the closet door, grabbing my messenger bag from the door knob, and turned to face him. I scolded myself as my heart skipped a beat at the sight of Grimmjow standing close to me. The sight of him glowering at me from beneath the hood of his sweater making my stomach flutter nervously.

"Ah, we're uh, going to see Urahara."

"The fucking shinigami? Are you insane?"

"Probably, but we're not going to get into that now. You coming or not?" I headed for the door, fully expecting him to follow. I wasn't disappointed. I could hear his stealthy footsteps, following me. "Be good, Grimmie. We'll be back. Make sure no other idiot arrancars put holes in our walls, okay?" Grimmie looked up from his position on the couch and yawned, which I took as an affirmative.

"Come on, woman. We're burning daylight here." My companion grouched, grabbing my hand in his own as he hauled me out the door behind him. Even after I caught up, he didn't let go. I fought off a blush and tried to ignore the warmth coursing through me from where our hands were connected. "How do you know this Urahara guy, anyways?" His question snapped me out of my dazed state.

"I met him the same night I stumbled into Hueco Mundo, after you sent me back through the garganta. He saw me come through and thought I was an arrancar. Turns out he knew my mom. She was a shinigami too, not that I knew anything about that until recently."

"That make you a shinigami too?" He seemed intrigued by this new information. Curious, like the giant cat he was. I smirked and turned away so he couldn't see it and bitch at me.

"I don't know what the fuck I am. Apparently I'm not all shinigami because it's not normal for them to be able to create gargantas."

"Doesn't that shinigami bastard know?"

"He won't tell me."

"Why the fuck not?"

"Because he's an asshole. Made some kind of deal with my mom before she died to keep it secret until the right time, which is apparently when I turn eighteen."

"Hn, that's fucking stupid." I threw my head back and laughed, my first genuine heartfelt laugh in I don't know how long. Giving his hand a little squeeze, I shot him an amused grin after I'd calmed down.

"For once, we agree on something. However, since he's being an asshat and he KNOWS he's an asshat, that makes him easier to manipulate, especially after I ripped him a new one after the last time we saw each other. I caught the look on his face before I left. He feels guilty. And guilty people will do almost anything to alleviate their conscience. Just in case though, you should probably wait outside."

"I ain't waiting outside."

"Must you always be so difficult?" He gave me his signature you're-a-fucking-idiot look. Rolling my eyes, I pulled him along down a side street, towards Urahara's shop. "Just behave yourself. In fact, don't talk at all."

"Kitten." He growled in a warning tone. I spared him a glance before pulling him to a stop in front of a nearby karaage cart and purchasing a basket for each of us. Pulling my hand out of his grip, I handed Grimmjow his before digging into my own.

"Mm, fried chickeny goodness." I hummed in pleasure, feeling much better with food in my belly. I looked over to Grimmjow who had polished his basket off in no time, his cheeks stuffed to the brim with the karaage. I giggled at the sight and brushed the crumbs off his face as he swallowed. "Feel better?"

"Hn." Since my hands were now occupied, he took it upon himself to keep tabs on me by placing his hand at the small of my back. It startled me for a moment, and I looked up at him inquisitively. He glared down at me, essentially telling me not to question him. I shrugged and consumed the rest of my meal as we continued on our way. I'd finished off my basket right as we arrived at the shop. The large man I remember being called Tessai was standing out front, sweeping the steps.

"Hey Tessai, is the old man in? I've got business to discuss with him."

"Ms. Yukimura, what a surprise. We weren't expecting you." I rolled my eyes and waited for him to respond to my initial question. "Kisuke is in the back of the shop, taking inventory. You're free to seek him out if you wish."

"Thanks." I tossed my empty basket, along with Grimmjow's, into the trashcan just outside the door and made to go inside. I was stopped abruptly by the broom handle that was suddenly blocking my path.

"However, your arrancar friend is not welcome here." I could feel said arrancar tensing up for a fight and placed a hand against his chest to calm him down.

"Yeah, well, my business concerns my arrancar friend, so I'm going to have to insist. Either we go in, or Urahara comes out. I really don't care which." Tessai studied the both of us for a moment before shaking his head and heading back into the shop.

"I will alert Kisuke to your presence. Please wait here."

"Well that went well." I mumbled, absentmindedly pulling my disheveled hair up and fastening it into a ponytail with the elastic band around my wrist. Grimmjow made a noise of discontent, and I glared up at him in response. "What is it now?" He refused to meet my glare, instead looking up at the blue sky, watching the clouds floating by.

"I like it down." He muttered. I rolled my eyes, irritated at the way the butterflies in my stomach flared up at his words. I pretended I didn't hear what he'd said and instead looked around the front of the shop. It seemed we weren't actually alone out here. Two kids were sweeping away flower blossoms from the walkway, one a boy with bright red hair and the other a girl with black hair pulled up in pigtails. The boy was currently glaring at us. The girl was still sweeping.

"You got a problem with me, kid?" I called out to him, amused by his bold dislike.

"Hmph, My name's not kid, it's Jinta."

"Oh, I'm sorry. You got a problem with me, _Jinta_?" He blushed and started sweeping away blossoms with his partner.

"I ain't got nothing to say to you, lady."

"Seems like you do. And the name's Sora. This is my friend, Grimmjow." I said, pointing at him. Jinta ignored me, swiping at the fallen flowers angrily. The little girl looked up and waved.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Ururu. We work for Urahara-san."

"I figured as much. What's your friend's problem?"

"I told you, I ain't got no problem!" Grimmjow finally took notice and sent a withering glare in the boy's direction, shutting him up quick, as he turned away swiftly.

"He doesn't like the spiritual pressure from you and your friend. It's dark and strong. Jinta is scared of the dark. That's why he has to -"

"Shut up, Ururu!" He turned on her, his face matching the color of his hair.

"What are you doing out here riling up my employees?" Urahara called out from the doorway, a paper fan and that damn hat of his obscuring most of his face.

"Urahara, nice of you to join us. I need a way for Grimmjow to move about freely without being conspicuous. What have you got for me?" I cut straight to the point. He blinked owlishly at me before glancing at my silent companion.

"And why would I go and do a thing like that? This is the same arrancar who attacked our dear Rukia, isn't it?" I could feel the tension building in the man beside me, but before he could snap, I did it for him.

"Watch yourself, Urahara Kisuke." I hissed. "His name is Grimmjow, that's all you need to know. Given the fact that you've been less than cooperative on certain issues involving myself, I figured you might be more forthcoming with assistance on other matters. Now, do you have something for me or not?" For the first time since that night in the park, Urahara's friendly facade dissolved and was replaced by the cold, calculating shinigami that lay beneath.

"I have something. Wait here." He turned to go back inside, pausing to glance over his shoulder at Grimmjow. "You, follow me." It seemed like forever before they finally came back out. Grimmjow had his hood down, but the partial Hollow mask on his jaw was missing. He looked like any other random guy on the street. _Although, still sexy as fuck. SHIT! Shut up, brain!_

"Looking good, Grimmjow. The normie look suits you." I teased. His eyes flashed and he gave me a playful grin as he swaggered over to me, his hands sunk deep in his pockets.

"Don't pretend like you don't want a piece of this, Kitten."

"Please stop with the flirting. I just ate." Urahara piped up from his spot in the doorway. "You really should choose your friends more wisely, Sora-chan." All playfulness died away, as both Grimmjow and I focused our livid glares at the former captain. Patting Grimmjow's arm, I took a step forward, looking up at the older man with barely concealed rage. I buried that rage deep and smiled up at him, throwing him off his game.

"I'm getting real tired of your shit, Urahara. I don't really think it's any of your damn business who I choose to spend my time with, do you?" He went to open his mouth, a protest on his lips, but I interrupted. "Oh, but speaking of choosing friends. I found another one in the park a few nights ago. She was left all alone, abandoned really. You remember Toraneko, don't you?" As my zanpakuto's name fell off my tongue, Urahara visibly paled. "I fed her some arrancar scraps, but she's still awfully hungry." I advanced on him, feeling dangerous and powerful. "So instead of being a dick about everything, maybe you should think about that, ne?" I reached out and patted his cheek gently, thrilling when he flinched away from my touch. "Anyways, Grimmjow and I have places to be. I can trust you to be discreet about this recent visit, right? It'd be a real shame if it got out that I was harboring a fugitive, ya know. I'd prefer to keep it on the downlow for as long as possible."

"Just leave, Sora. You were never here." He bit out, refusing to look me in the eye. I shrugged and turned my back to him.

"Nice doing business with you, Urahara. See you around." I waved without turning around, taking hold of Grimmjow's hand on my way away from the store front. He came along without a fuss, staring down at me with an indecipherable look. We'd only been walking for a few minutes when he pulled me into an alley and pushed me against a wall. "What is it with you and walls? Scratch that. Walls and trees." I didn't get much else out because his mouth was crushing mine, his body pressed tightly against my own as he bit my lip and coaxed me into returning the kiss. I was more than happy to, digging my fingers into the front of his hoodie as I pulled him in, battling for dominance. As I broke away for air, he continued to kiss me, trailing his lips down my neck before leaning in close, his breath fanning against my ear.

"Watching you threaten that shinigami was the biggest fucking turn on. I want you, Kitten. Give yourself to me." His voice was deep and filled with desire, sending a dangerous shiver down my spine, especially when he followed it up with a quick bite to my ear and then soothing the sharp pain with a sensual swipe of his tongue. I closed my eyes, fighting my basest desires to let him take me right there in a dirty alleyway. _Grimmjow, you bastard_. I tilted my head back and away from the walking temptation in front of me, letting the cool brick behind me help to settle my racing pulse. I placed a hand against his chest and gave a gentle shove, surprising him with my rejection enough that he actually took a step back.

"It's not very nice to seduce girls in alleyways, Grimmjow." I murmured, still struggling to get my emotions and hormones back under control. With one more deep breath of cool spring air, I felt a semblance of control return and looked up into his stormy blue eyes. "Anyways, this is hardly the time. I wasn't just being coy when I said we have places to be. It's time we got some answers to our mutual memory issue. How do you feel about a taking a little trip?" Stepping back, he leaned against the opposite wall with a huff.

"Where the fuck are we going?" Gazing across the alley at the angry, frustrated man before me my heart ached as it compared him with the boy in my mind. Turning away from him and the pain lurking in the darkest part of my heart, I looked up at the sky and reached a hand up towards the sun, remembering days long past.

"Home. We're going home."

 **Yay! New chapter! If you enjoyed that half as much as I did then I'm doing something right lol Seriously though, this was one of the easier chapters to write. I'd say we're about halfway through what I have planned for the story. Maybe a little less than halfway. I do plan on a sequel as well, which I'm really excited about. First things first, gotta finish this one. Don't worry, there's a bunch more chapters left before we're finished. Thanks to all who have followed, favorited, or reviewed. You guys are the best!**

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	10. Pain of the Past

**Yay! 10th chapter! This one is a little shorter than the past few chapters, but I promise there's some good stuff in here. Let me know what you think! As always, I do not own Bleach, just my OC :)**

 ***Sora's POV***

The train ride to my hometown was quiet and tense. Grimmjow spent most of it with his hood pulled up over his head while he slept, seemingly unphased by our sudden field trip. I was a different story. Sakurai City may have been where I was raised for a good part of my life, but it was nothing but bad memories and ghosts for me now. _Speaking of ghosts, I wonder if Kimi is still there, or if she finally passed on._ Kimi had been my first positive interaction with the many departed souls that lingered on our earthly plane. A lot of them were grownups or adolescents who got their kicks out of scaring the little girl who could see them. Kimi had been one of the only ghosts around my age, and she'd been more lonely than mean spirited. _She's either in Soul Society or Hollow food by now._ My grim thoughts added another reason for my dismal mood. _It's been almost ten years after all._ Sighing, I tried to distract myself from my anxiety about meeting Rena the best I could, but the memory of the last time we met kept playing over and over in my mind. It had been at Aoi's funeral. Mom and stood off to the side, still being given the cold shoulder by Rena and her husband. It was raining that day, just like it was when we'd found his body. Closing my eyes, I could see it all as clearly as if I'd never left that moment in time.

 _"Sora?" Suzuha questioned the little girl staring down at the small casket being lowered into the ground. "Sweetheart, are you okay?" She was worried because the little girl wasn't crying. She wasn't smiling. She wasn't doing much of anything aside from staring vacantly down at the container that held her now deceased best friend. Sora could hear her mother's voice, but it was as if she were speaking underwater. None of it made any sense. She just wanted to go home and watch movies in her blanket fort with Aoi-kun._

 _"He's not there." She whispered to herself. Sora knew that ghosts existed. Her friend Kimi was a ghost. She couldn't remember how she died, but she remembered her family and her friends. So even after she'd realized Aoi-kun was gone, she'd held out hope that maybe they could still be together. She'd be able to see him as a ghost, and they could play together like before. She had searched every inch of the riverbank where his body had been discovered, but there was no sign of him. She'd looked in all their favorite places, but still nothing. Now that he was being buried, it all felt so final. So real. She realized she'd never really said goodbye. The last thing she'd said to him was 'See you later, Aoi-kun.' An unfulfilled promise. Her heart hurt. Sora was scared. Aoi-kun was really, truly gone. He was dead. He wasn't a ghost. She was never going to see him again. A low keening noise erupted from the back of her throat as her heart started beating overtime and her vision blurred with tears. "Aoi-kun..." The casket was in the ground, the dirt already packed on top of it. The only people left were Sora, her mother, and Aoi's parents._

 _"Sora?" Her mother was kneeling beside her now, getting mud on her black dress."Come on, baby, let's go." Sora could feel the insistent pull of her mother's hands on her shoulder, but she couldn't pull herself away from the only thing left of her friend being buried beneath so much dirt. Panicking, Sora pulled away from her mother and started digging at the ground with her bare hands, sobbing as she worked._

 _"AOI! He can't breathe. How can he breathe in there?" She screamed as she continued to dig. The only thing that stopped her frantic attempts to save her already dead friend was a sharp, stinging slap across her right cheek that sent her reeling backwards._

 _"RENA!" Sora's mother cried in a mixture of outrage and horror._

 _"Shut the fuck up, you bitch! YOU'RE the reason he's gone! IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT AOI IS DEAD! YOU KILLED HIM! YOU KILLED MY BABY!" Rena went to slap the little girl again but was restrained by her husband. She continued to struggle to get at the small weeping figure in front of her, still screaming obscenities even as Suzuha scooped the child up and ran from the cemetery._

That was the last time I ever saw Rena. Mom put in her resignation at her job and we moved to Karakura a few days after the funeral. We'd never come back. I'd wanted to a few times, just to see Aoi's grave, to talk to him, even if he wasn't there. Mom wouldn't let me though, worried about my mental state. I guess that had been fair. The whole thing had fucked me up for a good long while. _Who am I kidding? I'm still as fucked up today as I was that day they put Aoi in the ground._ I smiled bitterly at the thought. Years of therapy hadn't been able to heal the scars Rena had left behind with her accusations, the deep-seated guilt that ate away at me on a daily basis. _And now I'm going back. I'm going to see her again._ I was going to be sick. I needed something to snap me out of these poisonous memories or I was going to suffocate. Glancing over at my companion, I decided he was my best bet at a distraction.

"Hey, Grimmjow." I poked him in the face where his Hollow mask usually rested. He grunted in his sleep and slowly opened his eyes to glare at me.

"What do you want, woman?"

"Tell me about Hueco Mundo. What's it like to live there when one isn't running from scary Hollows that want to eat them?" He rolled his eyes and settled back in his seat beside me, trying to get comfortable.

"Not really in the mood for a heart-to-heart, Kitten. Take a nap or something and leave me alone." Usually, I'd do just that, put off by his bad attitude, but I needed something to take my mind off the possibly huge mistake I was about to make in returning to the place that had haunted my dreams for years. I needed to feel something other than this overwhelming fear and panic.

"Please, Grimmjow? I - I'm nervous about going back. I need to keep myself from thinking about it. I need a distraction." He peeked at me from one open eye before surprising me by pulling me by my sleeve against his chest. Settling me against his side, he leaned his head back and closed his eyes again. I thought he was going back to sleep until I felt his deep voice resonating in his chest.

"It's always like that. From the moment I was reborn as a Hollow, it was a fight for survival. Only the strong earn the right to live in that world. The goal of all Hollows back then was to become the biggest, baddest son of a bitch in Hueco Mundo, a Vasto Lorde. See, not all Hollows are the same. We evolve. Once hollowfication occurs, you're filled with this enormous hunger. Most satisfy their needs by slipping into Soul Society or the World of the Living to snack on souls. However, some develop a taste for their fellow Hollows, feeding off each other in order to evolve, become stronger. Those Hollows are what are known as Menos. Once a Hollow has consumed enough, it becomes what is known as a Gillian. From there it can evolve two more times."

"What were you, before becoming an arrancar?" His voice was calming, easing my anxiety as I listened to him.

"I was an Adjuchas."

"What did you look like as an Adjuchas? Were you like this?" I could feel him laughing. He seemed comfortable now and started running his fingers through my hair, pulling it out of the hair tie I'd used earlier.

"Hn, no. I had more of a feline form, like a panther or jaguar."

"Pantera….Jaegerjaquez. Appropriate names."

"I guess. Anyways, I was an Adjuchas, which is what Gillians evolve from. Once you become an Adjuchas, you have to continually consume other Hollows or risk devolving back into a Gillian."

"Sounds like a lot of work."

"You have no idea." He snickered. "That's how I met my fraccions actually: Shawlong, Edrad, Yylfordt, Nakeem, and Di Roy. We were all fellow Adjuchas, striving to become Vasto Lordes, but no matter how many Hollows we consumed, we remained the same. They gave up. They asked me to devour parts of them so that they wouldn't devolve. It made me furious. They were giving up on our dream. They were weak. If an Adjuchas is partially devoured, he stops evolving completely, in both directions. They wouldn't devolve into Gillians, but they would never attain the form of a Vasto Lorde. So I continued my quest to become King of Hueco Mundo on my own. That is until that bastard Aizen showed up. I should have never gotten involved with that asshole, but I wanted the power. Now he expects me to lick his boots like some fucking dog. Ain't gonna happen. I don't take orders from anyone, least of all some shit eating shinigami." His fingers tightened their grip in my hair and I winced. This was obviously a sore topic for the ambitious Espada.

"Ne, Grimmjow?" I called out to him, trying to distract him from his anger. "What do you think of me?" I looked up at him coyly and smiled at him as I traced my fingers across his broad chest. "Do you still hate me?" For some reason, it had hurt when he'd said he hated me a few days ago. I mean, we'd done nothing but argue and piss each other off since the moment we'd met, so it should have been obvious. But I didn't like the thought of being despised by Grimmjow. If anything, I wanted to be his equal, someone to respect. My tactic to snap him out of his foul mood worked better than I had anticipated. His dangerous blue eyes met my own. His arm slipped from my shoulders down to my waist as he pulled me against him tightly.

"I can think of much better uses of my time than wasting it hating you, Kitten." He purred seductively, keeping eye contact as he gave me his most predatory smile. _FUCK! This man is going to kill me if he keeps looking at me like that_. I let out a shuddering breath as his face started getting closer to mine. I could feel his hand trying to be sneaky as he slid it past my waist before firmly squeezing my ass. The smirk he sent me was arrogant and challenging as his eyes gleamed with a devious light. "Why do you resist? I know you want me." He leaned closer, running his nose along the side of my neck, taking in my scent. "I can smell it on you." His other hand had moved from my waist and was creeping dangerously upwards. "Besides, you asked me to distract you. What better way than for me to fuck you? You'll be too busy screaming my name to remember anything else." He chuckled. My body was burning up. I snapped my gaze away from him in an attempt to break the spell, but it was the disapproving glare an older man was sending in our direction that actually did the trick. I jerked away from the addictive heat of Grimmjow's embrace and stood hastily.

"I, um, I need to use the restroom. We're almost there." Without looking back to see his reaction, I hurried off to the small restroom to cool my head, cursing myself for getting caught up in the moment again and losing track of my surroundings. I locked the bathroom door and leaned over the tiny sink, trying to get my breathing back in order. Looking up at my reflection, I could see the disheveled mess of my white curls, the slight swell to my lips where Grimmjow had bitten them earlier, and the flushed, needy look painted across my face. I was finally beginning to realize the danger of associating with the arrancar known as Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez.

 ***Grimmjow's POV***

"Fucking tease." I growled after Kitten disappeared. She knew exactly what she was doing when she came onto me earlier. She'd been trying to distract me from my all-consuming hate for that shinigami bastard by playing on my desire for her. This was now the second time she had rejected me, and it didn't sit well with me at all. My pride would not accept that I wasn't desirable as mating material. I knew she wanted me, but for some reason she refused to give in, refused to give herself to me. _Ah well, she'll give in to me sooner or later._ Despite my predatory nature, I wasn't against the idea of having her beg for my attention. Just the thought of her on her knees, looking up at me with that flushed, dazed look on her face sent a delicious chill down my spine. It had taken every ounce of self control not to chase after her when she'd pulled away with that needy look on her face. I was glad our car was relatively empty, because just the thought of another man seeing her in that state made my blood boil. I shifted in my seat, adjusting myself, and glared over at the old man who'd scared Kitten off. He paled and quickly looked away, pretending to read his newspaper. Satisfied that I'd scared him off, I sank back into my seat and waited for Kitten to return.

The train had just pulled into the station by the time she finally returned. It kinda pissed me off that she was obviously avoiding me. She grabbed her bag and tossed her hair back up into that irritating updo from earlier. I hated it. She didn't look bad, but I liked her better with her hair wild and free. I tried to catch her eye, but she stubbornly refused to even look my way. I could feel my ever-present rage flaring up. I was seconds away from ripping into her when she reached out and grabbed my hand, lacing her fingers through mine. She glanced up at me, her violet eyes warm yet reserved. _Heh, so that's it. She's embarrassed._ I guess that made sense. She'd always been pretty straightforward and reckless around me, but watching her interact with other people, she was usually careful about keeping them at a distance or putting on that tough bitch act she retreated to when she felt threatened. It had embarrassed her to have someone see her in a weak state, even if that someone was some shitty old man. I could understand not wanting others to see your vulnerability. It took some of the sting out of the rejection, as I pulled her after me off the train. I really couldn't give a fuck who was watching, but if it made Kitten uncomfortable, I guess I could play along.

"Um, Grimmjow? Do you know where you're going?"

"Huh?" I looked down at her then around the station. I didn't have a fucking clue where we were. I was just used to taking the lead. I frowned and stopped in my tracks, allowing her to guide us to wherever the hell we were going. She tried to hide it, but I caught the amused smirk on her face. I gave her hand a warning squeeze, to which she flashed me an unapologetic grin. "Tch, bitch."

"Asshole." She stuck her tongue out at me and crossed her eyes.

"You want me to bite it off?" I growled, chuckling when she turned away. "That's what I thought."

"You're mean." She pouted, but kept her hand in mine. Running my thumb over her wrist casually, I could feel her heart rate beating at a rapid pace.

"Hn, but you like it." I leaned over and whispered into her ear, enjoying the immediate blush my words created. She glared at me and dragged me behind her as she made for the exit. There were too many damn humans in this place. They were everywhere, and they kept bumping into me every two seconds. I was on the verge of snarling at the overweight, balding man who had just dug his elbow into my chest as he pushed through the crowd, when we finally broke through the throng of travelers moving to and from the trains.

"Grimmjow." I looked down at her to find her smiling at me. She motioned for me to come closer. I lowered my head until I was looking her in the eye, blinking in surprise when he reached out her free hand and ruffled my hair. "Good job." It was so stupid and juvenile, praising me for something so simple as making it through a crowd without killing someone, but it triggered that familiar pain. As I closed my eyes, I felt something ripping through the barrier in my mind. A memory.

" _Sora-chan, wait up!" The boy called out to the steadily disappearing form of the little girl. They'd taken the train for the first time together so they could go to the zoo. It hadn't been so bad getting on, since the station by their house was out of the way. This part of Sakurai was near the shopping district and was teeming with shoppers and businessmen in suits. It was all very overwhelming. He hadn't been scared when Sora had been with him, but now that he was alone he could feel himself panicking. Step by step, he moved in the direction his friend had raced off to, keeping his eyes trained on the break in the group of people rushing around him. He was starting to hyperventilate by the time he reached his destination, tears stinging his eyes as he took in big gulps of air. Any moment, he was going to lose it and embarrass himself in front of all these people by crying. As he reached out to wipe at his watery eyes, a hand came out and patted him on the head, smoothing his blue curls away from his face. "Wha-" He looked up to find Sora smiling down at him, her hand continuing to pet his head._

" _Good job, Aoi-kun. You were really brave." Stepping back, she rummaged around in the Usahana backpack her mom had given her especially for this trip. She finally found what she was looking for and pulled the box of her favorite chocolate banana pocky out, looking a bit sheepish. "Sorry I ran ahead. I saw the store and bought us some snacks. Want some?"_

" _Nn." He nodded and accepted the chocolate covered stick she extended to him, biting into the cookie. "Thanks, Sora-chan." He mumbled, reaching out for her hand. She quickly took it and pulled him along behind her, out into the sun._

" _Don't worry, Aoi-kun. I won't let go of your hand again. I won't leave you behind." The little boy smiled at her, watching her face light up at the sights and sounds of the city. He'd follow her anywhere, as long as she kept smiling at him like that._

"Agh!" I pulled my hand out of Kitten's as my body was wracked with the pain of remembering. This was the first time anything had gotten through. Through the pounding in my head, I tried to open my eyes. I needed to see her, make sure she was real, that she was there. Instead, I felt her slipping under my right arm, letting me lean on her as she pulled us away from the train station and the crowd that had started to gather around us.

"It's okay. I've got you. Just a little further." Her touch was cool against my now burning skin. Finally, we stopped and she leaned me against a tree. Prying my eyes open, I saw that we were in a park. I slumped back and let myself slide down, feeling completely drained, much like I had the last time this had happened. I hated it. Hated that she was a witness to it, that she could see my weakness. She was talking to me again. "Grimmjow, is there anything I can do? Do you need anything?" She was kneeling by my side now, her fingers reaching out to brush against my cheek, her eyes filled with worry and concern. Grabbing hold of her hand, I pressed her hand against my cheek and studied her. It was definitely her. She was the girl in the memory. _What are the chances? You're so damn ornery that you had to chase me even after I apparently died._ I didn't realize I'd laughed out loud until Kitten frowned, growing agitated that I was laughing in this situation.

"Pocky." I muttered. "I want pocky." My request seemed to surprise her, but she didn't question it, instead reaching back behind her to grab her bag. It was then that I finally noticed the design. "You gotta be fucking kidding me." I was laughing so hard that I started to wheeze.

"What?! What's so funny?!"

"You." I gasped running a hand over my face before pointing to her bag, featuring that damn rabbit she'd been obsessed with since childhood. "You're still a fucking kid. I can't believe you still like that shit."

"What are you -" Her eyes widened in shock when she finally realized. "You remembered something. You...remembered me?"

"Hn." Her brow furrowed as she looked down at her bag. I could practically see steam coming out her ears with how hard she was thinking.

"You remembered the day that we went to the zoo. The first time we took the train together." She looked up at me with a mixture of sadness and awe. "That's the only time I took that bag out. I lost it the same day on our way home. I was devastated. Aoi….you? You looked everywhere for it. We never did find it. I can't believe...this isn't possible. Is it?"

"You're asking the wrong guy, Kitten."

"I mean, sure I had suspicions, but I never thought." She paused, reaching out and taking my hand. "Are you really him?" The hope in her eyes was almost too painful to look at. _She must have really cared about that Aoi kid._

"I ain't him, Kitten." I said quietly. "These memories...they don't belong to me. They belong to that kid, Aoi. I ain't him no more. That was another life. I'm not Aoi. I'm Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez, understand?" I hated the brief glimpse of brokenness that flashed across her face before she quickly hid it behind a bright smile.

"Of course. I know that." She let go of my hand, reaching into her bag and pulling out a box of chocolate banana pocky before handing it to me. "Here. I'm just going to go grab us some drinks from the vending machine. Stay here, okay?" She passed a hand over my hair as she got up and headed towards a nearby machine. She wasn't fooling me for a second. This place wasn't just affecting me, Kitten was struggling, drowning under the weight of her own memories. I could see it as she was talking about the bag. This is where she'd broken apart for the first time and put all of those sharp edges back together into the sharp-tongued, angry woman who'd picked a fight with a Hollow during her first trip to Hueco Mundo. This place broke her, and now it was trying to break her again. And for that, I hated it. _I can't wait to be out of this shithole._ I could feel the panther pacing inside, agitated. _**Protect.**_ _I will. I'll burn this place to the ground if that's what it takes_. I grinned, leaning back against the tree as I watched my woman looking over the drink options. She was my toy to play with, and I'd be damned if I let anyone but me break her.

 **So many feelings! I may or may not have cried writing this chapter. Things are really progressing and I'm excited about the upcoming chapters. I hope you enjoy this one! Thanks to all you awesome peeps for reading, favorited, following, reviewing etc.**

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	11. Growing Pains

**Hey there, lovely readers! Sorry I fell off the face of the earth there! I hit some major writer's block after that last chapter, but I'm back now with a better vision of where I want this story to go. I cannot thank you all enough for taking the time to read my story, especially those who have left such kind reviews or encouraged me through private messaging. Seriously, you guys are the reason I was able to kick myself in the ass and get back into the game with this story. I couldn't have done it without you :)**

 **So yeah, this one's for all you amazing people out there who've stuck around waiting for me to get my shit together. 3**

 **As always, I do not own anything from Bleach. 0% mine. Just my adorably angry OC :3**

 ***Sora's POV***

I felt so stupid. _What were you expecting? Some heartfelt reunion at the miraculous return of your long lost friend? Grow up, Sora._ Pinching the bridge of my nose to keep the traitorous tears at bay, I scrounged some change from the bottom of my bag and fed the machine. The park was quiet. Not surprising, given the time of day. The riverbank Aoi and I used to cloud watch from wasn't too far away from here, actually. I shook my head to clear it of painful nostalgia. The sooner I found Rena, the sooner I could put Sakurai and the ghosts of my past behind me.

I grabbed the canned soda and turned back to where my companion was waiting. He was just as I'd left him, his head resting against the base of the tree, eyes shut against the midday sun. Stretched out like that, he reminded me of one of those lions at the zoo, basking in the heat of the day.

"If you're gonna stare -" I let out an embarrassing yelp as the seemingly unaware arrancar grabbed my wrist and pulled me down into his lap. One eye opened, he smirked as I squirmed, attempting to free myself. "Might as well get nice and close." Grimmjow purred into my ear. I could feel my face flushing a shade of red I wasn't sure even existed before. _Kami, what did I do to deserve this torment?_

"W-we aren't here to play around, Grimmjow! Quit fucking around." I put some distance between us by pushing his face away and avoiding eye contact. "Here. Now drink it and let's go." Finally succeeding in extricating myself from him, I tossed one of the drinks at him. He caught it with ease, that irritating smirk never leaving his face.

"Where to, Kitten?" He asked after chugging his soda down and tossing it towards the nearest trash bin. It went in perfectly. _Aoi always loved basketball_. I frowned at the thought and took a sip of my own drink, making a face when I realized I'd purchased my least favorite. It was too syrupy and sweet. Shaking it off, I looked back to my companion.

"Rena doesn't usually get off work until around 5:00. There's a place I need to go though. I haven't been there since Aoi died. It might help me...move on, if I can go back there and face my fears."

"Hn. Let's get going then." He muttered before slipping an arm under my legs and standing up. I let out a startled squeak at the sudden movement, and immediately started squirming, trying to get my feet back on solid ground. "Dammit, quit moving around, woman."

"Put me down! I'm not a child! I don't need to be carried around like one."

"Heh, could have fooled me. Look, you're pouting like one right now."

"Fucking asshole, I'm going to - FUCK!" Without warning, he dropped me on my ass. The shock of it had me speechless for all of ten seconds before I launched back up to my feet and tried to slap the hysterical arrancar in the face, only to be thwarted by his superior height and dodging skills. "You are the BIGGEST pain in the ass I have ever had the displeasure to meet, Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez!" I huffed, turning my back to him as I packed the pocky back into my bag and prepared to leave, trying to ignore the occasional snort from the laughing asshole behind me.

"What's the matter, Kitten? Does it hurt? Want me to kiss it better?" He teased before brazenly placing a hand on my recently bruised ass and giving it a firm squeeze. _The fucking balls on this man_. I wondered to myself in shock.

"Grimmjow, you have three seconds to get your filthy paws off of me before I separate you from a certain body part. 3, 2, -"

"Shit! Okay, alright. I got it." He quickly moved away, hands up in a gesture of surrender. "No need to bring out the claws." Chuckling, he tucked his hands into the pockets of his hoodie and gave me that big psychotic grin of his that only came out when he was really enjoying himself. I'd only really seen it a few times. It was usually reserved for when he was talking about fighting or in the midst of fighting, like when he'd come after me with Pantera that one time or when he was talking about his fight with Ichigo. I found it a bit unsettling that I actually found that grin of his attractive. Brushing off that particular revelation, I sent the unrepentant arrancar a warning glare before heading off in the direction of the river.

It was so strange being back in Sakurai. So much had changed since I'd been gone, yet it still felt so familiar. There were memories around every corner. It was easy to let my mind drift, getting caught up in the current of time. There was the candy shop Aoi and I would visit after school sometimes. I was halfway tempted to pop in to see if the old man who ran it was still there, or if someone else had taken over.

It wasn't all as I remembered though. Here and there, were shops that hadn't been around last time I'd been here. A new bookstore at the corner, and across from it, a cute pastry cafe, followed by a flashy shop advertising the latest smart phone. It was a bit disorienting. I hadn't even realized I'd stopped walking until I felt the warm pressure of Grimmjow's hand at the small of my back.

"Kitten."

"Sorry. I'm fine." I reached back and took his hand, threading my fingers through his, anchoring myself to the here and now. "Let's go." Pulling him along, we made our way to the riverbank. I could feel the sweat dripping down the back of my neck as we got closer, and I was full on trembling by the time the river came into view. The steady pressure of Grimmjow's hand in mine, kept me from losing my shit completely.

Taking it one step at a time, I eventually made it to the riverbank, standing in the spot Aoi and I had spent countless hours playing and cloud-watching. Standing there with Grimmjow now, it felt like I'd never left. I could feel myself slipping, losing my grip on reality. My breathing began to quicken as I forced myself to look farther down the bank, to the place of my nightmares. The horror of it had tainted this special place that should have been full of happy memories. But the spot where Aoi had died appeared no different than any other area of the riverbank, and for some reason, that was my breaking point.

"This isn't right." I murmured, my hand slipping out of Grimmjow's as I staggered closer. _It looks normal. How can it look normal?! The blood is gone. Of course it's gone, but it shouldn't look like this. Something terrible happened here! It can't - it's like nothing happened, but it DID! And it's my fault._ Scenes from that night and Aoi's funeral plagued my mind, making me relive the terror of that horrible moment in this exact spot and throwing his death in my face over and over again.

"Are you scared, Kitten?" I hadn't even realized I'd fallen to my knees until his voice shocked me out of thoughts. He was behind me, his legs caging me in from the side and his arms locked around my midsection. My shivering body immediately sought the heat emanating from him, sinking back into him. The slight pinch on my uninjured side prompted me to answer.

"Yes."

"What are you scared of?"

"Being weak." I gasped, each struggled breath burning my air-starved lungs.

"Why?" His left hand moved from my waist, distracting me as his fingertips ghosted over my collarbone and caused a delicious shiver to run down my spine.

"Because then…. I can't…. protect the people….. I care about." Having him close and focusing on his questions and touch was helping to calm me down bit by bit. Slowly but surely, I was catching my breath.

"Do you think you're weak?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"You said it yourself." I muttered, taking hold of his hand and moving it to my neck. "You could crush me at any time and I would be powerless to stop you...because I'm weak."

"Hn, that's true. But I won't. Do you know why?" That gave me pause. I really didn't understand why he had spared my life, not just once, but during every one of our encounters.

"Because you find me amusing?"

"Yes, but mostly because I like your strength of will. Strong women are very….attractive." He whispered the last bit into my ear, accompanied by a teasing bite.

"I'm not -"

"What is this?" He cut me off. His right hand had slipped under my dress and was now resting overtop of the stitches in my side.

"The injury I got from that fucking asshole, Arturo." I growled, getting irritated with his endless stream of questions and teasing touches, now that I had calmed down a bit. My stitches were still pretty sensitive, and this asshole was brushing his thumb back and forth, an inch shy of them.

"And what happened to Arturo?"

"I tore him to pieces with my zanpakuto."

"That doesn't sound like some weak ass shit to me. That sounds like you refused to be his prey, and instead, you became the predator." His hands returned to my waist and carefully picked me up, turning me around so that we were face to face and I was straddling his lap. There was no mocking smile like I had assumed. He had that serious look on his face like when he looked up at the sky, looking for answers. "I'm acknowledging you, Kitten. You'll never be better than me. I'll always be the best. But if you want, I'll train you to use that sword of yours so you can kick anyone's ass, if they try to fuck with you. Hell, if you can create gargantas, I could even teach you how to make ceros."

I was now blushing furiously, looking any and everywhere, except at my companion. I was embarrassed by yet thrilled at the fact that I had Grimmjow's respect. I was excited by the idea of having him helping me get stronger. With one finger under my chin, he tilted my head back towards him to meet those intense blue eyes.

"So what's it going to be, Kitten? You can't get stronger, if you're tied down by the past."

"I want to get stronger." I whispered to him. He smirked and pulled me tightly against him, running his fingers through my hair.

"Good girl." He purred into my ear. I could feel my insides turning into molten hot goo. "Now rest up. I'll wake you up when it's time. We'll go see that bitch, and then we're getting the fuck out of this shitty town. Got it?" He never got a response though. I was already drifting off, exhausted by the day's events and their emotional toll on me. The last thing on my mind as I slipped away was _Thank you for being here, Grimmjow_.

 ***Grimmjow's POV***

I may have preferred to fight my battles with claws and a sword, but that didn't mean I didn't recognize a battle of the mind. Every day in Hueco Mundo was a physical and mental struggle. Not only had I fought off other Hollows, but from day one it had been a struggle against myself, battling the mindless instinct to just devour everything and become a mindless eating machine. I'd fought my way to the top and then battled my self-doubt, the little part of me that was scared of devolving, of never achieving my ultimate form. I imagined it was no different than what I had seen play out in front of me a short while ago.

From the moment we stepped foot on the riverbank, I had felt Kitten retreating inside herself. She had been battling herself for years, just like I had. She was no weakling, I knew that. But this place was poison. I could see it eating away at her, dulling those sharp edges I enjoyed so much. I couldn't let this place destroy her. No. She was mine, and I protect what is mine. So I gave her a little push in the right direction. That's all she had needed. _My Kitten is strong._ The panther purred in agreement. She had a ways to go in learning how to wield that strength, but for now it was enough that she could acknowledge it for herself and feel confident in her ability to move forward.

With a tired sigh, I leaned back against the bank to stare up at the clouds, careful not to wake the woman sleeping against my chest. I'd come to enjoy this world's sky. It was so different from the one in Hueco Mundo or the artificial one inside Las Noches. This one seemed boundless- infinite. The clouds were a nice touch. They reminded me of Kitten's hair, fluffy and white.

A flash of a memory, two kids laying side by side under a bright blue sky. They were so close, blue and white tresses mixing together, painting a sky of their own on the ground. I liked that memory, but it was fleeting and replaced all too quickly with the one that had struck me when we'd first arrived. It had been the reason I hadn't immediately been able to snap Kitten out of her downward spiral.

The memories seemed to be coming more frequently and easily than before, but this particular one had been especially painful. It was the memory of my death as a human and my rebirth as a Hollow. I could now understand why Hollows aren't supposed to have memories from before their rebirth. To know how it feels to be happy and full and then to have that stripped away, turned into some hollow shell, always hungry, never satisfied - it would drive a lesser man insane.

I'd fought my own battle on the riverbank, and I nearly lost.

 _The rain was really coming down. The little boy was regretting leaving his friend's house without asking for an umbrella. It was too late to turn back though. He'd take the shortcut by the river, grab the umbrella he'd left behind there the day before and change clothes at home, before heading back to Sora, umbrella in hand._

 _The thought of his best friend made him smile. They had just celebrated her sixth birthday together at the zoo. It had been so much fun. She told him when they got home how grown up she was after having successfully ridden the train and gone to the zoo all by herself with no grown-ups. He'd laughed. He knew that their mothers had been following them the whole time. He'd caught sight of them at the lion exhibit, before they hid behind one of the food stands. Not that he'd ever tell Sora that. It made her happy to think she was an independent grown-up now._

 _He was getting close to the riverbank now. He could just barely make out their cloud-watching spot through the rain. The little boy ran towards it, looking around before spotting the umbrella closer to the river._

 _That's right. They'd been trying to fish something out of the river yesterday and had used his umbrella to bring it to shore. It had turned out to be an old boot, which had been disappointing until Sora declared it to be the boot of some fearsome pirate lord who had lost his right foot to a great sea serpent, which had sparked an impromptu battle of ninja versus pirate._

" _Gotcha. Now it's time to head home and then back to Sora's."_

" _I don't think sssso, kid." A voice hissed from entirely too close. The boy jumped and looked around, trying to find the person in the dark. "I wassss waiting for the girl to come back. Ssssuch sssstrong sssspiritual pressssure from ssssuch a ssssmall thing. Ssshe would have been delicioussss." He had finally pinpointed where the voice was coming from, and stared in horror as the speaker made its way towards him...from out of the river. "You will do jusssst fine until I can get hold of her. You ssssmell like her. Sssshe hasss awakened your own sssspiritual powerssss. Yesss, I will feasssst tonight." The creature was now looming over the boy. It was a grotesque looking thing with the head of a snake, wearing a strange white mask. It walked upright on two legs that ended in bird-like talons. Its scaled arms ended in sharp claws._

 _The sight of the creature had frozen him on the spot in fear. He didn't even see the snake monster strike until it was too late. He only felt a fleeting moment of pain as the creature withdrew its claw from his chest. The next moment, he was watching his body fall face first into the mud, blood pooling on the ground, quickly getting washed away by the rain._

" _What -" Looking down at himself, he could see a small chain attached to his stomach._

" _What a tassssty looking ssssoul." The snake made a noise that could have been a laugh, the boy wasn't sure. All he knew was that he was dead now. The creature had killed him, and he was going to do the same thing to Sora, if he didn't stop him._

" _I'll let you eat me, but you can't hurt my friend." Again, it seemed to laugh._

" _No deal. I like it when they sssstruggle. I find it much more ssssatissssfying. No, the little girl will be mine assss well. What wassss her name again? Ah yessss, Ssssora."_

" _NO! No, no, no, no, NO!" The boy could feel everything boiling up inside him: fear, sorrow, despair, but most of all rage. This creature could not have his friend. He had to protect her. He needed to stop the snake monster somehow. But how could he? He wasn't strong enough. The monster would eat him and then it would go after Sora!_

 _Clutching at his head, the boy screamed. The chain burned, bright and hot before cracking and disintegrating, leaving behind a gaping hole in the boy's stomach. He threw his head back and howled as a white mask settled over his face. The pain was gone, replaced only by a growing emptiness and a vague memory of what needed to be done._

" _You will not have her." The newly made Hollow growled before launching himself at his enemy, ripping into its face with claws and fangs, swallowing down the disgusting flesh. He was so hungry, so empty. The other Hollow tried to fight him off, but no matter how it clawed at the smaller Hollow, he would not relinquish his hold. He did not stop until there was nothing left for him to devour. Walking away from the body of the human boy, the newly made Hollow created a garganta and stepped through, mumbling to himself his final, fleeting, human thought. "You cannot have her because she is mine."_

I could never tell her about it. It wasn't her fault a Hollow had targeted her, or that our proximity had awakened enough spiritual pressure inside my human self to make me appetizing enough for consumption. That's how she would see it though. _Stupid, foolish woman_. The memory had brought on that itching, uncomfortable feeling again. I held Kitten tighter, leaning closer to scent her. As always, having her near calmed me.

"I've got you now, Kitten. And those sick fucks will never touch what is **mine**."

 **Sooooo many feels in this chapter. I wanted to address something a reader brought up to me real quick. They were asking me about why Sora is so angry like 24/7, what her deal with Ichigo is, and why she would sell out the Soul Reapers because hey, that's kind of fucked up. Well, Sora is a fucked up character. She's been through shit and definitely not in a stable mindset. And to be honest, I love that about her. She is so flawed as a character, but that just makes her journey so much more satisfying as she grows and learns from her mistakes. This chapter was so incredible for me as a writer because I get to see her making progress as a character. *sniff* My baby is growing up! So yeah, if you ever have questions about the characters or what's going on plotwise let me know! I love getting into the nitty gritty of this shit lol**

 **Also, you guys are the best!**

 **I was going to do the shout out thing for everybody like usual, but realized this story has accumulated a decent amount of awesome peeps following/favoriting/reviewing. My heart is an exploding, gooey mess for you guys. I'd totally take on a snake monster for you!**

 **Hope you liked the new chapter! I'll do my best to fight on and get the next chapter up before you guys keel over from old age lol**

 **Seriously, I'll try to do better about getting chapters out more frequently, or at least update you guys if I get major writer's block again ;P**

 **See you next time!**


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